Hollis v. The All American Bar on First, Inc.
- Rearden
- 1:22-cv-01466
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 21
Hollis v. The All American Bar, Judge Rearden reassigned the case and ordered a joint status letter within three weeks.
The parties, their counsel, and any self-represented parties in the case are affected by the reassignment, the joint-letter requirement, continuing deadlines, and Judge Rearden’s filing and case-management rules.
What happened
In Hollis v. The All American Bar on First, Inc., the court announced that Judge Jennifer H. Rearden had taken over the case. Earlier orders, deadlines, and dates remained in effect unless the court changed them, but previously scheduled appearances before the district judge were postponed.
The court ordered the parties to file a joint letter within three weeks describing the case’s claims and defenses, jurisdiction and venue, deadlines, motions, appeals, discovery, settlement discussions, possible alternative dispute resolution, estimated trial length, and other information that could help move the case forward. If the case had already ended, the parties did not need to file the letter if they filed appropriate proof of termination first.
Judge Rearden’s order addressed case administration and included her rules for civil and self-represented parties, including filing, service, discovery, motions, conferences, trial preparation, and sealed filings. It did not decide the parties’ claims or defenses.
The detailed version
- Hollis v. The All American Bar on First, Inc. · No. 1:22-cv-01466
- Rearden
- Jan. 23, 2023
What the Order Did
The court issued a notice of reassignment stating that the case had been reassigned to Judge Jennifer H. Rearden. Unless the court ordered otherwise, all earlier orders, dates, and deadlines remained effective. Any conference or oral argument before, or directed by, the magistrate judge was to proceed as previously ordered. Previously scheduled appearances or conferences before the district judge were adjourned until further notice.
Required Joint Status Letter
Within three weeks after the order was filed, the parties were ordered to submit a joint letter of no more than five double-spaced pages. To the extent relevant, the letter must address:
- Counsel’s names and current contact information; - The nature of the claims and principal defenses; - Why federal jurisdiction and venue are proper, including the required citizenship information if jurisdiction is based on the parties’ citizenship; - Existing deadlines and cutoff dates; - Scheduled conferences or arguments that had not yet occurred; - Outstanding motions and the relief requested; - Pending appeals; - Discovery completed and any essential remaining discovery; - The status of settlement discussions without stating exact offers or demands; - Discussions about mediation, a settlement conference, or a private mediator; - The estimated trial length; and - Any other information that could help the court advance the case, including dispositive or novel issues.
If the case had been settled or otherwise terminated, the parties did not need to submit the joint letter or appear if they filed a stipulation of discontinuance, voluntary dismissal, or other appropriate proof of termination before the deadline.
Individual Rules and Practices
The order attached and incorporated Judge Rearden’s rules for civil cases and civil cases involving self-represented parties. The rules address communications with the court, electronic filing, service of documents, requests for extensions or adjournments, discovery disputes, motions, conferences, temporary restraining orders, default judgments, pretrial submissions, trial procedures, electronic devices, and sealed or redacted filings.
Among other things, the rules state that self-represented parties generally must communicate through the Pro Se Office rather than contacting the court directly. They must keep a current mailing address on the docket. Discovery requests must be sent to the opposing party or its counsel rather than to the court, and discovery disputes require a good-faith effort to resolve the issue before seeking court intervention.
The Clerk of Court was directed to mail the order and the applicable rules to self-represented parties. The order itself did not rule on any motion, claim, defense, jurisdictional issue, or other underlying legal question.
Read the full 21-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.