All local rules for N.D. Ill., integrated with this judge's published requirements.
Contacting Chambers For communications with chambers on case related matters, please email Judge Iasparro’s operations specialist, Veronica Klaus at: Veronica_Klaus@ilnd.uscourts.gov . Ensure you copy opposing counsel on all communications with the Court. All proposed orders should be sent to: Proposed_Order_Iasparro@ilnd.uscourts.gov
Neither a motion nor brief in support of or in opposition to any motion nor objections to a report and recommendation or order of a magistrate judge or special master, shall exceed 15 pages without prior approval of the court. Local Rule 7.1 ↗
Neither a motion nor brief in support of or in opposition to any motion nor objections to a report and recommendation or order of a magistrate judge or special master, shall exceed 15 pages without prior approval of the court. Local Rule 7.1 ↗
Neither a motion nor brief in support of or in opposition to any motion nor objections to a report and recommendation or order of a magistrate judge or special master, shall exceed 15 pages without prior approval of the court. Local Rule 7.1 ↗
(b) A judge may require a motion or an objection to a magistrate judge’s order to be accompanied by a notice of presentment specifying the date and time on which, and judge before whom, the motion or objection is to be presented. The date of presentment shall be not more than 14 days following the date on which the motion or objection is delivered to the court pursuant to LR 78.1. Local Rule 5.3(b) ↗
Except where a judge fixes a different time in accordance with this rule, the original of any motion shall be filed by 4:30 p.m. of the second business day preceding the date of presentment. A judge may fix a time for delivery longer than that provided by this rule, or elect to hear motions less frequently than daily, or both. Local Rule 78.1 ↗
The court may set a briefing schedule. Oral argument may be allowed in the court’s discretion. Local Rule 78.3 ↗
Any judge wishing to refer a matter in a civil case pending on that judge’s calendar to a magistrate judge may do so following procedures approved by the Executive Committee. Local Rule 72.1 ↗
DISCOVERY MOTIONS AND MOTIONS TO COMPEL The Court believes the parties can and should resolve most discovery disputes themselves. The Court will not consider any discovery motions unless the parties have complied with the meet-and-confer requirement under Local Rule 37.2. Any discovery motion must state with specificity when and how the movant complied with Local Rule 37.2. Parties are reminded that compliance with Local Rule 37.2 requires a good faith effort to resolve discovery disputes and, other than in exceptional circumstances, requires communication that takes place face-to-face (including by video) or by telephone. The Court prefers a face-to-face or video meeting; the mere exchange of correspondence, including email, normally will not be sufficient to comply with Local Rule 37.2. The Court considers failure to seriously engage in the meet-and-confer process to be grounds for denial of the motion. Any response to a contested discovery motion must be filed within 3 business days of when the motion is filed. No replies in support of discovery motions shall be filed absent leave of court. The Court will generally decide discovery motions without hearing oral argument. If the Court believes a hearing is necessary, the Court will so order. If a hearing is set on a discovery motion, all parties should be fully prepared to argue any discovery motion on that date. The Court may rule on the discovery motion during or after the hearing and without further briefing. If after hearing argument, the Court believes that the motion requires any further briefing, the Court normally will set an expedited briefing schedule so that the matter can be resolved promptly. Any motions to compel must identify and attach the specific discovery requests at issue, as well as the opposing party’s response ( i.e. , motions must not simply identify specific “categories” of documents or discovery that the movant seeks). Motions to compel must also include arguments supporting the relevancy and proportionality of the requested discovery and the parties’ meet and confer efforts. Motions to compel may be summarily stricken for a failure to comply with this order. Moreover, parties must not seek overbroad requests in the hope that the Court will tailor the resolution on its own; each discovery request will be adjudicated based on the totality of the request, so parties should appropriately narrow their requests ahead of time. Failure to do so may result in denial of the motion to compel with prejudice; the Court will not tailor a discovery request for the party when it could have done it on its own. Parties must immediately notify the Court if they are withdrawing (or narrowing) any previously filed discovery motion. Any motion to extend discovery deadlines must be presented in writing (after conferral with the other side), filed in advance of the discovery deadline, and must present the opposing party’s position and demonstrate good cause for the extension. With respect to disputes over electronic discovery, if the parties have reached an impasse regarding the discovery or records from a database, server, computer, service provider or similar electronic storage facility (ESF), before filing a motion to compel, the parties are required to meet and confer with a qualified and knowledgeable IT representative for each party in order to determine the most effective and feasible ways to retrieve the requested material, as well as the proper format for the retrieval of the records. This electronic discovery conference must take place in person or via video, and both sides should be prepared to discuss specifically the parameters of both the search(es) and the ESF.
EMERGENCY MOTIONS To qualify as an “emergency,” a motion must arise from an unforeseen circumstance that arises suddenly and unexpectedly, and that requires immediate action in order to avoid serious or irreparable harm to one or more of the parties. Motions for extension of time for filing, or for continuances of deadlines or other dates previously set by the Court, are highly unlikely to qualify as “emergencies.” In the event a party seeks to present an emergency motion, that party must inform the Court’s operations specialist by email at Veronica_Klaus@ilnd.uscourts.gov prior to filing the motion of the general nature of the motion and the reason that it requires emergency treatment, so that it can be determined if emergency treatment is appropriate. A party seeking to present an emergency motion must make all reasonable efforts to provide the opposing party with actual notice of the motion. Source ↗
Courtesy Copies Courtesy copies are not required unless otherwise requested by the Court. Source ↗
Judge Iasparro will generally set an initial in-person status conference upon assignment of cases by consent, designation, or referral within 60 days of the case being assigned. Within the order setting the case for an initial status conference, the Court will also set a deadline by which the parties must submit a Joint Initial Status Report and Proposed Case Management Order. The parties must confer pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f) and cooperate in preparing the Joint Initial Status Report and Proposed Case Management Order. The parties must use the following fillable form for the Joint Initial Status Report and Proposed Case Management Order . It shall not be retyped. Additional pages may be attached for information that does not fit on the form, such as the names of additional parties and/or counsel. At the initial status conference, the Court expects to set a discovery schedule, briefing schedules that may be necessary, and other deadlines and timetables applicable to the case. Accordingly, lead trial counsel for each party, or an attorney with substantial familiarity with and responsibility for the case, must appear in person at the initial status conference and be prepared to discuss all aspects of the case, to include but not be limited to the following: 1. Whether all necessary parties have been named and served; 2. The basis for federal jurisdiction, including, without limitation, the determination of membership and citizenship for business entities where diversity forms the basis of jurisdiction; 3. The general nature of the claims and any counterclaims, and the major contested legal and factual issues; 4. The nature of any responsive pleadings or motions that have been filed or are anticipated; 5. The relief sought by the plaintiff(s), the amount in controversy, elements of damages, and whether there is insurance coverage; 6. The possibility of settlement; 7. The nature, scope and scheduling of discovery, particularly discovery that is necessary to engage in meaningful settlement negotiations and so should be given priority; and 8. The probable length of any trial. Judge Iasparro encourages the parties to discuss and prepare a more detailed presentation of issues, and identify those issues in the Joint Initial Status Report and Proposed Case Management Order, when complexity so requires. Source ↗
MOTION PRACTICE GENERALLY Parties are not to notice motions for presentment. The Court will notify the parties of the need, if any, for a hearing on the motion. The Court requests that the body of any motion state whether the motion is joint or if the other parties have authorized the movant to state that the parties either agree to the motion or have no objection to it. The Court notes that this requirement necessitates the parties communicating about the filing of any motion before it gets filed, which will hopefully alleviate the filing of unnecessary motions. If a party is seeking to enforce a subpoena on a non-party, the party must provide notice of the motion to that non-party. Absent leave of Court, memoranda of law must comply with the 15-page limitation set forth in Local Rule 7.1. The Court reminds the parties that they should follow Local Rule 5.2, which provides that “[a] judge’s paper copy shall be bound on the left side and shall include protruding tabs for exhibits. A list of exhibits must be provided for each document that contains more than one exhibit.” While the Court will exercise its discretion to the extent parties are unable to comply with the formalities of Local Rule 5.2, the Court appreciates paper copies that are compiled in an orderly and organized fashion. Any motion to extend time must be presented in writing (after conferral with the other side), filed in advance of the discovery deadline, and must present the opposing party’s position and demonstrate good cause for the extension. Source ↗
MOTION PRACTICE GENERALLY Parties are not to notice motions for presentment. The Court will notify the parties of the need, if any, for a hearing on the motion. The Court requests that the body of any motion state whether the motion is joint or if the other parties have authorized the movant to state that the parties either agree to the motion or have no objection to it. The Court notes that this requirement necessitates the parties communicating about the filing of any motion before it gets filed, which will hopefully alleviate the filing of unnecessary motions. If a party is seeking to enforce a subpoena on a non-party, the party must provide notice of the motion to that non-party. Absent leave of Court, memoranda of law must comply with the 15-page limitation set forth in Local Rule 7.1. The Court reminds the parties that they should follow Local Rule 5.2, which provides that “[a] judge’s paper copy shall be bound on the left side and shall include protruding tabs for exhibits. A list of exhibits must be provided for each document that contains more than one exhibit.” While the Court will exercise its discretion to the extent parties are unable to comply with the formalities of Local Rule 5.2, the Court appreciates paper copies that are compiled in an orderly and organized fashion. Any motion to extend time must be presented in writing (after conferral with the other side), filed in advance of the discovery deadline, and must present the opposing party’s position and demonstrate good cause for the extension. Source ↗
MOTION PRACTICE GENERALLY Parties are not to notice motions for presentment. The Court will notify the parties of the need, if any, for a hearing on the motion. The Court requests that the body of any motion state whether the motion is joint or if the other parties have authorized the movant to state that the parties either agree to the motion or have no objection to it. The Court notes that this requirement necessitates the parties communicating about the filing of any motion before it gets filed, which will hopefully alleviate the filing of unnecessary motions. If a party is seeking to enforce a subpoena on a non-party, the party must provide notice of the motion to that non-party. Absent leave of Court, memoranda of law must comply with the 15-page limitation set forth in Local Rule 7.1. The Court reminds the parties that they should follow Local Rule 5.2, which provides that “[a] judge’s paper copy shall be bound on the left side and shall include protruding tabs for exhibits. A list of exhibits must be provided for each document that contains more than one exhibit.” While the Court will exercise its discretion to the extent parties are unable to comply with the formalities of Local Rule 5.2, the Court appreciates paper copies that are compiled in an orderly and organized fashion. Any motion to extend time must be presented in writing (after conferral with the other side), filed in advance of the discovery deadline, and must present the opposing party’s position and demonstrate good cause for the extension. Source ↗