All local rules for D.N.J., integrated with this judge's published requirements.
(b) Applications for orders to show cause, and for consent and ex parte orders, shall be filed with the Clerk, who shall promptly deliver each application to the District Judge to whom the case has been assigned. D.N.J. L.Civ.R. 65.1(b) ↗
Pro se (unrepresented) litigants are advised that ex parte (one-sided) and/or personal communications and submissions are not advised and will generally not be accepted. All substantive correspondence with the Court should be filed on the CM/ECF docket.
Before corresponding with the Court, litigants must consult the relevant rules for the Third Circuit, the District of New Jersey, this document, and the docket on the CM/ECF system. In general, communications with the Court should be made through the CM/ECF, not by fax, email, or phone call to chambers. Every communication requesting the Court's input must indicate the requesting party's efforts to first confer with the other party(ies) to resolve the matter. If a party emails Chambers, they must copy chambers_of_judge_evelyn_padin@njd.uscourts.gov on all correspondences. Calls to the Court should be reserved for emergencies.
Direct correspondence to advise the Court that a case has been settled or dismissed is also appropriate, as is correspondence on any matter when specifically requested by the Court.
(b) Any brief shall include a table of contents and a table of authorities and shall not exceed 40 ordinary typed or printed pages (15 pages for any reply brief submitted under L.Civ.R. 7.1(d)(3) and any brief in support of or in opposition to a motion for reconsideration submitted under L.Civ.R. 7.1(i)), excluding pages required for the table of contents and authorities. Briefs of greater length will only be accepted if special permission of the Judge is obtained prior to submission of the brief. D.N.J. L.Civ.R. 7.2(b) ↗
(b) Any brief shall include a table of contents and a table of authorities and shall not exceed 40 ordinary typed or printed pages (15 pages for any reply brief submitted under L.Civ.R. 7.1(d)(3) and any brief in support of or in opposition to a motion for reconsideration submitted under L.Civ.R. 7.1(i)), excluding pages required for the table of contents and authorities. Briefs of greater length will only be accepted if special permission of the Judge is obtained prior to submission of the brief. D.N.J. L.Civ.R. 7.2(b) ↗
(b) Any brief shall include a table of contents and a table of authorities and shall not exceed 40 ordinary typed or printed pages (15 pages for any reply brief submitted under L.Civ.R. 7.1(d)(3) and any brief in support of or in opposition to a motion for reconsideration submitted under L.Civ.R. 7.1(i)), excluding pages required for the table of contents and authorities. Briefs of greater length will only be accepted if special permission of the Judge is obtained prior to submission of the brief. D.N.J. L.Civ.R. 7.2(b) ↗
Judge Padin requires strict compliance with the length limitations and format requirements for briefs set forth in Local Rule 7.2. Requests for overlength briefs are highly disfavored.
Judge Padin requires strict compliance with the length limitations and format requirements for briefs set forth in Local Rule 7.2. Requests for overlength briefs are highly disfavored.
Replies are generally permitted pursuant to Local Civil Rule 7.1(d). However, according to Local Civil Rule 7.1(d)(3), no reply papers shall be filed to cross-motions under Local Civil Rule 7.1(h); Reconsideration under Local Civil Rule 7.1(i); Case Management under Local Civil Rule 16.1(g)(2); and Discovery under Local Civil Rule 37.1(b)(3), unless the Court permits otherwise. No sur-replies are permitted without prior permission. They are strongly discouraged unless it is apparent on the face of the submission that such additional briefing is necessary to rebut an issue not discussed in the initial briefs. Permitted Sur-reply briefs may be filed and served within seven (7) days of service of the brief to which the sur-reply responds unless the Court sets a different schedule. Sur-reply submissions should not contain a repeat recitation of the facts of the case and, without leave of Court for good cause shown, must not exceed ten (10) pages in total.
(c) All briefs shall be in black lettering on paper size 8.5 x 11 inches. All margins shall be not less than one inch on sides, top, and bottom. (d) Each page of a brief shall contain double-spaced text and/or single-spaced footnotes or inserts. Typeface shall be in 12-point non-proportional font (such as Courier New 12) or an equivalent 14-point proportional font (such as Times New Roman 14). If a 12-point proportional font is used instead, the page limits shall be reduced by 25 percent (e.g., the 40 page limit becomes 30 pages in this font and the 15 page limit becomes 11.25 pages). Footnotes shall be printed in the same size of type utilized in the text. D.N.J. L.Civ.R. 7.2(c)–(d) ↗
Judge Padin requires strict compliance with the length limitations and format requirements for briefs set forth in Local Rule 7.2. Requests for overlength briefs are highly disfavored. Judge Padin also requires compliance with Local Rule 5.1(h) that all PDF filings be text searchable and at a minimum 400 dpi. Failure to abide by these requirements may result in rejection of the papers.
The use of any GAI (e.g., OpenAI's ChatGPT, Google's Gemini, or any legal tools leveraging GAI) in any court filings requires a mandatory certification that the GAI work product was diligently reviewed by a human being for accuracy and applicability. This review should include, but not be limited to, correcting errors and eliminating hallucinations. A failure to comply with this requirement may result in sanctions, such as the filing being stricken, and/or a referral to a bar disciplinary committee. § I.B (Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence) ↗
(1) No application will be heard unless the moving papers and a brief, prepared in accordance with L.Civ.R. 7.2, and proof or acknowledgment of service on all other parties, are filed with the Clerk at least 24 days prior to the noticed motion day. The brief shall be a separate document for submission to the Court, and shall note the motion day on the cover page. D.N.J. L.Civ.R. 7.1(d)(1) ↗
(a) Except during vacation periods of the Court, the regular motion days for all vicinages are the first and third Monday of each month. Whenever a regular motion day falls on a holiday, the motion day becomes the following non-holiday. The Clerk shall publish a list of all regular motion days for each calendar year, and corresponding filing deadlines, on the website of the Court and in appropriate legal publications. D.N.J. L.Civ.R. 78.1(a) ↗
Litigants should submit one courtesy copy of all motion papers to the Court, unless the materials comprise more than one large binder, in which case they should be submitted on a USB drive. The courtesy copies should be single-sided and stapled. If any motion papers are filed under seal, litigants should provide a USB drive with all motion papers and related filings.
(e) Preparation of Order All filed motions shall have annexed thereto a proposed order. If the proposed order does not adequately reflect the Court’s ruling, the prevailing party, if directed by the Court, shall submit an order within seven days of the ruling on the motion on notice to all other parties. Unless the Court otherwise directs, if no specific objection to that order with reasons therefor is received within seven days of its receipt by the Court, the order may be signed. If such an objection is made, the matter may be listed for hearing at the discretion of the Court. D.N.J. L.Civ.R. 7.1(e) ↗
Judge Padin requires strict compliance with the length limitations and format requirements for briefs set forth in Local Rule 7.2. Requests for overlength briefs are highly disfavored. Judge Padin also requires compliance with Local Rule 5.1(h) that all PDF filings be text searchable and at a minimum 400 dpi. Failure to abide by these requirements may result in rejection of the papers.
The assigned Magistrate Judge handles motions to seal.
(b) All motions and other applications will be decided on the papers submitted unless: (1) a party requests oral argument and the request is granted by the Judge; or (2) the Court, sua sponte, directs that oral argument be held. Any request for oral argument shall be clearly marked on the first page of the notice of motion and/or the brief filed by the party making such request. If oral argument is to be heard, the Court will so notify the parties and designate the day and time of the argument. D.N.J. L.Civ.R. 78.1(b) ↗
If the Court determines that oral argument will be helpful in deciding a matter, Judge Padin will schedule it and the parties will be specifically advised of a date and time for oral argument via CM/ECF.
Telephone conferences with all litigants may be used at the Court's discretion to resolve scheduling matters, time extensions, or other disputes. Litigants will be notified of the date and time for the telephone conference. Absent prior permission from the Court, parties are each limited to two attorneys each appearing at telephone conferences. Only one attorney per side will be permitted to address the Court during the call. Counsel should file a notice of appearance prior to appearing at a telephone conference or they will not be permitted to speak. Failure to observe basic telephone courtesy will result in the Court's refusal to use telephone conferences in matters involving the offending participants.
Litigants should expect the Court to maintain the dates contained in the Scheduling Order, unless there is good cause to justify a change. Generally, Judge Padin will grant a short (i.e., two weeks or fewer) continuance or extension that will not affect discovery dates, motion-decision dates, hearing dates, or trial dates, if requested with the agreement of all litigants. Any other request for a continuance or extension should set forth in detail the basis for the request and whether the request is agreed to or opposed by the other litigant(s). A request for an extension or continuance of longer than two (2) weeks regarding the trial date, a discovery cutoff date, or the deadline for filing dispositive motions must be made sufficiently prior to the due date to allow time for the Court to consider it and should set forth compelling reason(s) for the relief sought. An unopposed request may be made by letter to the Court and should include the reasons for the request. All such letters—as with all correspondence with the Court—should be filed electronically via CM/ECF.
(a) Conference to Resolve Disputes (1) Counsel shall confer to resolve any discovery dispute. Any such dispute not resolved shall be presented by telephone conference call or letter to the Magistrate Judge. This presentation shall precede any formal motion. D.N.J. L.Civ.R. 37.1(a)(1) (discovery disputes presented to the Magistrate Judge before any formal motion) ↗
In general, and unless otherwise directed by the Court, all discovery-related correspondence, as well as any correspondence related to non-dispositive motions, should be addressed to the Magistrate Judge assigned to the case. All correspondence related to dispositive motions, trials, and related oral arguments should be addressed to Judge Padin.
In general, and unless otherwise directed by the Court, all discovery-related correspondence, as well as any correspondence related to non-dispositive motions, should be addressed to the Magistrate Judge assigned to the case.
i. Pre-Motion Conference in Civil Cases In an effort to resolve cases expeditiously, before bringing a motion to dismiss, motion for a more definite statement, motion to remand, motion for change of venue, motion to compel arbitration, or motion for judgment on the pleadings in civil matters, a party must submit a letter, not to exceed three (3) single-spaced pages, including counsel’s signature, requesting a pre-motion conference. The letter must set forth the basis for the anticipated motion and include citations to relevant authority. Within seven (7) days after receipt of this letter, all adversaries must submit a written response, not to exceed three (3) single-spaced pages. No party may submit a reply letter unless directed by the Court. Affidavits and exhibits are not permitted unless directed by the Court. A proffer by the attorney, however, of the contents of any such affidavit(s) and/or exhibit(s) shall suffice. The Court may attempt to resolve the dispute(s) by ordering the parties to meet and confer to discuss the substance of the contemplated motion(s) and to permit litigants the opportunity to cure any alleged deficiencies. The Court may also attempt to resolve the dispute at a pre-motion conference (in person or via telephone/videoconference), to the extent possible. Only issues raised in the letters will be discussed at the pre-motion conference. If the dispute cannot be resolved through meeting and conferring or at a pre-motion conference (or if the Court determines that a conference would not be helpful), the moving party may proceed with filing its motion. To be clear, this procedure does not preclude a party from filing any of the above motions pursuant to Local Civil Rule 12.1. Rather, the Court hopes to use this procedure to advance the case efficiently and minimize the costs of litigation to the parties. In addition, compliance with this procedure shall not be deemed a waiver of any parties’ defenses as to lack of personal jurisdiction, improper venue, insufficient process, or insufficient service of process. A party’s submission of a pre-motion letter will toll that party’s time to file its motion (or answer) through (i) the date of the pre-motion conference or (ii) the Court’s decision not to conduct such a conference. If the Court determines that a pre-motion conference would not be helpful and instructs a party to proceed with filing its proposed motion without a conference, that party shall have an additional seven (7) days to file after its Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(a) deadline, unless additional time is stipulated or the Court so orders. The procedures set forth supra Section I(G) apply to pre-motion telephone conferences. The pre-motion letter requirement does not apply in cases in which either side is pro se or in bankruptcy or social security appeals. Source ↗