Magistrate Judge Stephanie S. Christensen -- United States District Court, Central District of California

Courtroom 790, 7th Floor, Edward R. Roybal Federal Building and United States Courthouse, Los Angeles

warning

Key Traps — Where Counsel Gets Caught

1. MANDATORY pre-motion Zoom IDC before any discovery motion may be filed — court may strike motions filed without it (leave available only by ex parte)
2. IDC request e-mail to SSC_chambers@cacd.uscourts.gov due within ONE business day of the last meet-and-confer session
3. IDC email must include: 3 proposed Zoom times, discovery cut-off date, neutral statement of each dispute (with exact language of any discovery request), and each party's position
4. IDC position statements capped at 3 sentences per dispute — may cite no more than 2 pertinent Ninth Circuit/district/California appellate cases
5. IDC email must NOT contain attachments unless the court directs
6. Courtesy copies of e-filed documents NOT required — the sole exception is summary judgment motions and oppositions in civil cases
7. Video/hybrid appearances at non-evidentiary hearings permitted with advance approval — request via email at least 48 hours before hearing, cc opposing counsel
8. IDC procedure does not apply to ex parte applications, motions filed by non-parties, or in-custody self-represented party disputes

Quick Reference

Topic	Rule
Chambers Copies	Conditional
Remote Appearances	Remote Appearances: The Court permits video and hybrid appearances at hearings on most non-evidentiary motions with advanced approval. A party wishing to appear by video must email that request to the Courtroom Deputy Clerk at ssc_chambers@cacd.uscourts.gov, no later than 48 hours prior to the scheduled hearing, and must cc opposing counsel on the request. Public access is provided in the assigned courtroom. [mj-christensen-stephanie \| remote_appearances]

Topic

Rule

Chambers Copies

Conditional

Remote Appearances

Remote Appearances: The Court permits video and hybrid appearances at hearings on most non-evidentiary motions with advanced approval. A party wishing to appear by video must email that request to the Courtroom Deputy Clerk at ssc_chambers@cacd.uscourts.gov, no later than 48 hours prior to the scheduled hearing, and must cc opposing counsel on the request. Public access is provided in the assigned courtroom. [mj-christensen-stephanie | remote_appearances]

Procedural Briefing by Motion Type

mail Subscribe to Judge Christensen procedures email updates

Primary sources. No fluff. Straight to your inbox.

chevron_right

Before You File

chevron_right

At Filing

Chambers Copies

Conditional

chevron_right

Before the Hearing

Remote Appearances

chevron_right

Background Rules

Discovery Dispute Procedure

Informal Discovery Conference. Discovery disputes often may be resolved without the need for formal motion papers... First, as Local Civil Rule 37-1 requires, the parties must meet and confer in a good-faith effort to resolve any discovery dispute. Second, if the parties conclude that they have reached an impasse, within one business day of the last meet-and-confer session, the movant must e-mail the Court at SSC_chambers@cacd.uscourts.gov seeking a conference with the Court via Zoom to discuss the discovery dispute. The procedure does not apply to ex parte applications, where the motion is filed by a non-party, or where a party to the discovery dispute is in custody and is self-represented. [mj-christensen-stephanie | discovery_dispute_procedure]

Discovery Motion Process

Discovery Motions — Generally: Discovery motions are to be scheduled before the magistrate judge unless otherwise ordered by the district judge. The parties are advised to review the procedures and standing orders of the assigned district judge before filing any discovery motion. Strict compliance with Local Civil Rule 37 is required except as otherwise noted in these procedures. The Court may take a motion under submission without oral argument. See Local Civil Rule 7-15. Informal Discovery Conference. Discovery disputes often may be resolved without the need for formal motion papers... the Court requires the parties to follow the procedure below for filing discovery motions. The procedure does not apply to ex parte applications (see General Procedure 2 above), where the motion is filed by a non-party, or where a party to the discovery dispute is in custody and is self-represented. First, as Local Civil Rule 37-1 requires, the parties must meet and confer in a good-faith effort to resolve any discovery dispute. Second, if the parties conclude that they have reached an impasse, within one business day of the last meet-and-confer session, the movant must e-mail the Court at SSC_chambers@cacd.uscourts.gov seeking a conference with the Court via Zoom to discuss the discovery dispute. The e-mail must include... [three proposed times, discovery cut-off date, neutral statement of each issue, brief description of each party's position, opposing counsel as cc]. Third, no discovery motion may be filed until the Court has conducted a pre-motion conference via Zoom unless the movant has obtained leave of Court sought by an ex parte application. The Court may strike any discovery motion filed in violation of this procedure. [mj-christensen-stephanie | discovery_motion_process]

Sources & Currency

description CDCA Judge Procedures & Schedules — Official Court Page

verified Procedures verified . Verify now →

All C.D. Cal. Judges

Aenlle-Rocha Anderson Bernal Birotte Blumenfeld Bristow Carter Castillo Christensen ← Court Donahue Early Eick Fairbank Fischer Fitzgerald Frimpong Garnett Gee Hatter Holcomb Hsu Hwang Kato Kaufman Kim Klausner Kronstadt Kwok Marshall McCormick Mircheff Murillo Olguin Oliver Park Pym Ramirez Almadani Richlin Roberts Rocconi Sagar Scarsi Scott Selna Slaughter Snyder Spaeth Staton Stevenson Sykes Valenzuela Vera Viramontes Walter Wilson Wright Wu