Judge Robert M. Illman — United States District Court, Northern District of California

Standing Orders — Inline Excerpts

With respect to chambers’ copies of motions and proposed orders, all parties are hereby relieved of mailing chambers’ copies until further notice.

Delivery Address

Eureka-McKinleyville Federal Courthouse 3140 Boeing Avenue McKinleyville, CA 95519

Judge Illman's Settlement Conference Order

[Source: https://cand.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/standing-orders/RMI_Settlement-Conference-Standing-Order.pdf]

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA EUREKA DIVISION SETTLEMENT CONFERENCE STANDING ORDER OF JUDGE ILLMAN (May 10, 2019) 1. Counsel shall ensure that whatever discovery is needed for all sides to evaluate the case for settlement purposes is completed by the date of the Settlement Conference. Counsel shall cooperate in providing discovery informally and expeditiously. 2. Lead trial counsel shall appear at the Settlement Conference with the parties. Any party who is not a natural person shall be represented by the person(s) with unlimited authority to negotiate a settlement. An insured party shall appear with a representative of the carrier with full authority to negotiate up to the limits of coverage. Personal attendance of a party representative will rarely be excused by the court, and then only upon separate written application demonstrating substantial hardship, served on opposing counsel, and lodged as early as the basis for the hardship is known but no later than the Settlement Statement. 3. Each party shall prepare a Settlement Conference Statement which must be submitted in .pdf format to RMIsettlement@cand.uscourts.gov no later than fourteen (14) calendar days prior to the conference. The Settlement Statement need not be served on opposing counsel. The parties are encouraged, however, to exchange Settlement Statements. 4. The Settlement Conference Statement shall not exceed ten (10) pages of text and twenty (20) pages of exhibits and shall include the following: a. A brief statement of the facts of the case; b. A brief statement of the claims and defenses including, but not limited to, statutory or other grounds upon which the claims are founded, and a candid evaluation of the parties’ likelihood of prevailing on the claims and defenses; c. A summary of the proceedings to date and any pending motions; d. The relief sought, including an itemization of damages; and e. The party’s position on settlement, including present demands and offers and a history of past settlement discussions. 5. The court’s time can best be used to assist the parties in completing their negotiations, not in starting them. Accordingly, Plaintiff(s) must serve a demand in writing no later than fourteen (14) days before the conference and Defendant(s) must respond in writing no later than seven (7) days before the conference. The parties are urged to carefully evaluate their case before taking a settlement position since extreme positions hinder the process. IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: May 10, 2019 ROBERT M. ILLMAN
United States Magistrate Judge

Judge Illman's Standing Order

[Source: https://cand.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/standing-orders/RMI-Standing-Order-Revised9-16-22.pdf]

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
EUREKA DIVISION GENERAL STANDING ORDER OF JUDGE ROBERT M. ILLMAN (effective Sep. 19, 2022) 1. Compliance with Federal Rules, General Orders, Local Rules and Standing
Orders: All parties shall consult and comply with all applicable Federal Rules, as well as the General Orders and Local Rules of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, except as expressly modified herein. Failure to comply with any applicable rule or order may be deemed sufficient grounds for monetary sanctions, dismissal, entry of default judgment, or other appropriate sanctions. 2. Consent/Declination to Proceed Before a Magistrate Judge: In civil cases that are assigned to Judge Illman for all purposes, each party should file a consent to the assignment of a United States Magistrate Judge for all purposes, or a request for reassignment to a district judge, as soon as possible. If a party files a dispositive motion (such as a motion to dismiss or a motion for remand), the moving party must file the consent/declination simultaneously with the motion. The consent/declination form is available at https://www.cand.uscourts.gov/mj_consent- declination_form_10-2020/

Location: Judge Illman primarily presides over matters at the courthouse at 3140 Boeing Avenue in McKinleyville, California, but regularly allows the parties to appear by video or teleconference for most hearings. Judge Illman also schedules certain matters in San Francisco at the convenience of the parties.

Discovery Disputes: All parties with a discovery dispute in a case pending before, or referred to, Judge Illman shall comply with the following:

(a) In lieu of filing formal discovery motions, lead trial counsel for the parties shall meet and confer in a good faith effort to resolve the matter. Within five (5) business days of the meet and confer session, the parties shall file a detailed joint letter. It shall not exceed five (5) pages, excluding the cover page, without prior leave of court. This joint letter shall include a description of every issue in dispute, and a detailed summary of each party’s final position on each issue. The joint letter may not be accompanied by exhibits or affidavits other than exact copies of interrogatories, requests for production of documents and/or responses, privilege logs, and relevant deposition testimony. On receipt of the joint letter, the court will determine what further proceedings are necessary.
(b) In the event that counsel are unable to meet and confer as directed above, or a moving party is unable to obtain the opposing party’s portion of a joint letter after the meet and confer session, the moving party shall file a written request for a telephonic conference for the purpose of enforcing the court’s meet and confer requirement, or for the court to fashion an alternative procedure. The written request shall include a declaration which explains any attempt

to meet and confer and/or obtain the joint letter, as well as the reasons for the inability to comply with the standing order. The moving party may attach exhibits to the declaration, not to exceed seven (7) pages.
(c) In emergencies during discovery events (e.g., depositions), the court is available pursuant to Civil L.R. 37-1(b). Any party seeking court intervention during a discovery event must contact Judge Illman’s Courtroom Deputy Clerk, Ms. Knudson, at 707-445-3612, or rmicrd@cand.uscourts.gov prior to filing any documents.
(d) Any party seeking an award of attorney fees or other expenses as sanctions in connection with a discovery dispute shall file a separate motion as required by Civil L.R. 37-3.
(e) If a party wishes to file a document under seal, that party shall first file a written request for a sealing order setting forth the good cause and accompanied by a proposed order, as provided by Civil L.R. 79-5.
5. Civil Law and Motion: Judge Illman’s civil law and motion calendar generally takes place on Tuesdays at 11:00 a.m..
6. Settlement Conferences: All parties appearing before Judge Illman for a settlement conference shall comply with Judge Illman’s Settlement Conference Standing Order, which is available at https://www.cand.uscourts.gov/judges/illman-robert-m-rmi/

Chambers Copy and Proposed Orders: Chambers copies should not be submitted unless otherwise ordered by the court. Proposed orders should be emailed in MS Word format to rmipo@cand.uscourts.gov. This address is to be used only for proposed orders unless otherwise directed.
8. Pro Se Assistance: Parties representing themselves should consult the Representing Yourself page of the court’s website which can be found at https://www.cand.uscourts.gov/pro-se- litigants/

IT IS SO ORDERED. Dated: September 19, 2022

ROBERT M. ILLMAN United States Magistrate Judge

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