DISTRICT COURT CITY AND COUNTY OF DENVER, COLORADO 1437 BANNOCK ST. DENVER, CO 80202 DATE FILED: June 23, 2015 8:18 AM CASE NUMBER: 2015CV30918 Plaintiff(s): CITY AND COUNTY OF DENVER, v. Defendant(s): TELE COMM RESOURCES, LP COURT USE ONLY Case Number: 15CV30918 Courtroom: 409 PRETRIAL ORDER (JURY TRIALS) I. ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION. The parties may engage in Alternative Dispute Resolution ( ADR ). If they do, such ADR should be completed before the Pre-Trial Conference date. If the parties want a court settlement conference, they may request one by calling the Courtroom Clerk. If there is a dispute concerning the necessity of ADR, a Motion may be filed, and I will resolve any such dispute. II. MOTIONS. 1. Written Motions: a. Parties shall indicate in the title of a Motion if it is unopposed. b. Counsel shall submit a proposed Order with all written Motions. c. Written motions for complete or partial summary judgment must be filed at least 91 days before the trial, pursuant to C.R.C.P. 56(c). I will not accept stipulations to extend the time for filing of these Motions and any Motion filed after this deadline will be summarily denied as untimely. d. Written motions will be accompanied by a brief or recitation of authority. There will then be a response, and a reply, unless I eliminate pleadings pursuant to C.R.C.P. 121. No other pleadings relating to a given motion
will be accepted for filing unless permitted by court order. Please do not combine motions or combine your own motions with a response or reply. e. The requirements of C.R.C.P. 121(1-15) will be strictly enforced. Motions or briefs may not exceed fifteen pages (exclusive of exhibits) without leave of the Court. I may expedite the briefing schedule pursuant to C.R.C.P. 121 (1-15). f. Once motions are at issue, I will rule on them promptly, usually without a hearing. Do not ask for a motions hearing as a matter of course; if I want one, I will set one. Motions hearings will be set so as not to interfere with the conduct of other trials. g. If counsel for any party intends to object to the admissibility of any expert testimony as contemplated by People v. Shreck, 22 P.3d 68 (Colo. 2001), such objections must be made by written motion filed at least 35 days before the Pre-Trial Conference. Failure to file such motions will be deemed a waiver of Shreck admissibility objections. If such motions are filed, I will decide if a hearing is required. 2. Discovery and Pre-Trial Motions a. No written motions regarding discovery disputes will be permitted. If there is a discovery dispute that you cannot resolve, either counsel may call the Clerk of Courtroom 409 (telephone: (720) 865-8613) to be placed on the next available docket. If there is no agreement, there shall be a joint conference call to the clerk to schedule the next available mutually agreeable docket day. The dispute will be argued and resolved at the hearing, or taken under advisement with a prompt ruling by the Court. Instead of discovery motions, the parties shall file a one page, concise identification of the discovery issues in dispute, with citations and provide a copy of any legal authority that might be helpful to the Court, at least 2 days before the hearing. This shall be done in lieu of filing a written motion and response. DO NOT file any written motion, attachments, etc. unless the Court requests it. b. Motions in limine must be filed at least 21days before the Pre-trial Conference unless a different time is permitted by court order. (If no Pretrial Conference is scheduled, motions in limine must be filed at least 35 days prior to trial unless a different time is permitted by court order.) Responses shall be filed no more than 7 days after the Motion is filed, unless a different time is permitted by Court Order. No replies shall be allowed unless specifically requested by the Court. The Court will resolve the Motions either by written order or at the pre-trial conference III. CASE MANAGEMENT ORDER.
The provisions of C.R.C.P. 16 concerning a presumptive case management order will apply. IV. TRIAL SETTINGS. 1. A setting date must be designated in the case management order, as set forth in C.R.C.P. 16, as amended. 2. Cases must be set for trial no later than 28 days after the case is at issue. 3. No case will be set for: 1) more than five trial days, or 2) further away than one year without my permission. Before permission is granted, there will be a conference between counsel and me as to why a longer trial or more distant trial date is necessary. 4. Trial dates are given on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays between 10:00 a.m. and noon. Notices to set must be filed at least seven days prior to the date setting will be made. 5. It is preferred that counsel contact the Clerk of Courtroom 409 jointly. If that cannot be accommodated, the Clerk will give the contacting party three dates to choose from, and that party is expected to confer with opposing counsel, select a mutually agreeable date, and inform the Court of such as soon as possible. 6. Continuances will not be granted as a matter of course, even if stipulated. Continuances will be granted only for good cause shown. Contested motions for continuance will likely be decided on the first day of trial unless ripe at least five days before trial. V. TRIAL MANAGEMENT ORDER. The Trial Management Order ( TMO ) must comply strictly with the requirements of C.R.C.P. 16 as amended and must be filed no later than the Pre-Trial Conference. VI. SETTLEMENT. If parties settle prior to trial, it is requested that they notify Court staff as soon as possible. However, upcoming court dates, including a pending trial date, will not be vacated until a Notice of Settlement and dismissal documents are filed in ICCES. Once a Notice of Settlement is filed, parties are ordered to file dismissal documents within 14 days, unless extraordinary circumstances prevent them from doing so. In such a case, parties must submit a motion for extension.
VII. BEFORE TRIAL. 1. For all cases set for a jury trial, a Pre-Trial Conference will be held approximately 28 days before trial. Please set a Pre-Trial Conference date at the same time as setting the trial date. Counsel are required to appear in person at the Pre-Trial Conference; exemptions may be requested by motion. Parties need not appear. 2. All exhibits must be pre-marked. Plaintiffs will use numbers; defendants will use letters. Copies of exhibits must be exchanged as required by C.R.C.P. 16. Other orders concerning exhibits may be entered as necessary. 3. If you wish to use depositions in place of live testimony, all designations and cross-designations must be made and exchanged at least 28 days before trial. Counsel will provide me with a single deposition copy containing all designations before the first day of trial. 4. Original depositions will remain sealed until counsel request at trial and in front of the jury that they be unsealed. Before trial begins, you must give me copies of all depositions likely to be used at the trial, either as direct evidence or impeachment. 5. The same rules apply to written depositions and to recorded depositions. 6. If you need any form of audio visual equipment, you must provide it. 7. Plan ahead. Forthwith matters are discouraged. I may not consider your emergency to be an emergency. VIII. INSTRUCTIONS. 1. Instructions must be filed at least three days before trial pursuant to C.R.C.P. 16(g), as amended, unless otherwise ordered. File instructions by sending them as an e-mail attachment to my law clerk, Roger Michael Pimentel at roger.pimentel@judicial.state.co.us 2. Unless otherwise agreed to or ordered, plaintiff s counsel will prepare the stock instructions. 3. If applicable to your case, combine the following instructions into one instruction: 3:4, 3:8, 3:9, 3:12, and 3:15; 3:10 and 3:11; 3:16 and 3:17; 5:1 and 5:6. To reduce the number of instructions given to the jury, other instructions that can be combined should be combined.
4. The parties should agree upon a simple statement of the case (Instruction No. 1) that I can read to the jury during orientation at the beginning of the trial. 5. We will begin work on the final set of instructions once plaintiff s case is completed. We will work on instructions during breaks, over the lunch hour, or at the end of the day. The goal is to have a completed set of instructions ready for the jury as soon as presentation of evidence is concluded. IX. JUROR NOTEBOOKS. Each trial juror will be provided with a juror notebook. We will provide the notebooks, prepare general information and juror question forms, as well as provide materials for taking notes. If the parties wish to provide other materials to the jurors for inclusion in the juror notebooks, we will discuss such matters at the Pre-Trial Conference. X. JURY SELECTION. 1. Each side will have a maximum of 20 minutes for voir dire, unless additional time is requested and permitted in advance of the first day of trial. In multi-party cases, time must be divided between all parties on one side of the case. 2. I will ask some basic questions before counsel s voir dire. If there are questions all parties believe I should ask during my voir dire, such questions should be submitted to me for consideration before trial.. 3. Voir dire will be conducted from the podium. 4. We will seat an alternate juror. I will advise counsel on the first day of trial how the alternate will be designated. My preference is that the alternate be allowed to deliberate, but we will determine this before the end of the trial. 5. I allow preemptory challenges to be made against the entire panel. 6. Typically, challenges for cause will be exercised at the bench upon the conclusion of all parties voir dire. Preemptory challenges will be announced orally in open court and indicated on the list of jurors remaining. X. CONDUCT OF TRIAL.
1. Scheduling/Use of Time. a. The trial day will start at 8:30 a.m. and end at 5:00 p.m. We will take a morning and an afternoon break of 10 to 15 minutes each. Lunch will run from approximately noon to 1:30 p.m. Adjustments to this schedule may be made for good cause shown. b. Counsel and parties will be in court by 8:15 a.m. on each day of trial. This allows time for setup and preparation before beginning each trial day. It also provides an opportunity for counsel to discuss anything with me that needs to be dealt with before we begin the trial day. c. Jurors are the most important people in the decision-making process; their time is more valuable than ours. Witnesses must be scheduled so that no lengthy gaps occur in testimony. If there is a lengthy delay in one side s presentation of evidence, I am likely to require the other side to begin the presentation of evidence. Proper concern for the jury s time is generally more important than the order in which evidence is presented. d. Counsel and I will spend a few minutes at the end of each trial day discussing what will occur the next day, including what witnesses are scheduled and how much time each witness is expected to take. 2. Opening Statements. Each side will have a maximum of 20 minutes for its opening statement. In multiple-party cases, this time must be divided between the parties. Additional time may be permitted for good cause shown. 3. Witnesses. a. If any party or witness requires an interpreter which the Court is required to provide under C.J.D. 06-03 (as amended, June 2011), you must notify my clerk of the need for the interpreter, the language needed and the anticipated date and length of testimony of the witness who is English Language Deficient no less than thirty (30) days before trial. Failure to do so may result in the Court s inability to schedule an interpreter and, if so, the witness will not be permitted to testify. b. Due to the requirements of the recording system, questioning will generally be done from the podium unless permission is granted to approach the witness or the bench. I will permit some reasonable movement away from the podium during questioning.
c. No examination will be permitted beyond re-cross. If something is asked in re-cross that was outside the scope of re-direct, you should object. d. Juror questions will be permitted when all other questions have been asked. Jurors will submit written questions on forms which we will place in the juror notebooks. As required, I will make a determination on whether the question will be asked. Counsel may ask brief follow-up questions after juror questions have been asked, but only as to issues raised by the juror s questions. 4. Objections. a. Make objections professionally: be brief, concise and specific. b. Speaking objections are not permitted. c. Do not automatically respond to an objection; if the court requests a response; limit response to a rule of evidence. 5. Closing Arguments. Each side will have 20 minutes for closing argument. In multiple-party cases, this time must be divided between the parties. Additional time may be permitted for good cause shown. 6. Withdrawal of Exhibits. Because we no longer have a court reporter and because of a reduced work force in the clerk's office, we will no longer maintain custody of exhibits at the conclusion of a trial or hearing. Unless all parties agree on the record that exhibits need not be maintained, the following procedure will be followed: a. When the trial or hearing is concluded, each party will withdraw any exhibits or depositions which that party marked and/or admitted, whether or not admitted into evidence; b. The party will maintain in its custody the withdrawn exhibits and/or depositions without modification of any kind until sixty days after the time for the need of such exhibits for appellate or other review purposes has expired, unless all parties stipulate otherwise on the record or in writing. It will be the responsibility of the withdrawing parties to determine when the appropriate time period has expired. 7. Miscellaneous. a. Parties must remain at counsel table at all times the trial is in session.
b. Counsel must use surnames. c. No food is permitted in the courtroom; beverages are permitted at counsel table. d. Please turn off all cellular phones, pagers, etc., before coming into court. XI. GENERAL RULES. 1. Any reference in this Order to counsel includes pro se parties. 2. If you settle this case before trial, please call my staff and tell them. 3. This is a CIVIL division. Discourteous lawyering will not be tolerated. Counsel will treat jurors, parties, witnesses, me, my staff, and each other with professionalism, courtesy and respect at all times. This applies not only to the actual trial, but to all aspects of the case, including discovery and motions practice, and includes what is written as well as what is said. Done this June 23, 2015. BY THE COURT: cc: Counsel (by e-filing) Michael J. Vallejos District Judge