IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ALABAMA
INRE: )
GENERAL ORDER FOR REFERRAL OF CIVIL )
MATTERS TO THE UNITED STATES )
MAGISTRATE JUDGES OF THE )
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ALABAMA )
The policy of this Court is to promote the efficient utilization of magistrate
judges and to avoid the unnecessary duplication of judicial action. To further that
policy, the Court adopts the following civil case assignment plan.
The Clerk shall assign ordinary civil cases blindly and at random by means
of an automated system approved by the judges of the Court. The full-time
magistrate judges of this District shall be included in the civil case assignment
system in the same manner as active district judges. In each case assigned at filing
to a magistrate judge, the Clerk shall enter a "Notice of Assignment of Case to a
United States Magistrate Judge." The Notice shall indicate that upon written
consent of all parties, the magistrate judge shall conduct all proceedings including
a jury or bench trial and shall order the entry of a final judgment in the case in
accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 636(c) and Fed. R. Civ. P. 73. The Clerk shall
provide a consent form to each party. The consent form shall give each party the
option to voluntarily consent to or decline dispositive jurisdiction by the magistrate
judge. Each party must complete the form and submit it to the Court. If any party
declines magistrate judge jurisdiction, then the Clerk shall reassign the case to a
district court judge. If all parties have not provided written consent to magistrate
judge jurisdiction within 45 days after either (1) the last served defendant has filed
an answer, (2) a defendant has filed a motion to dismiss, or (3) a plaintiff has filed
a motion to remand, whichever occurs first, then the Clerk shall reassign the case
to a district judge.
Excluded from the civil cases assigned to magistrate judges pursuant this
Order are bankruptcy matters, including motions to withdraw the reference, and
any case in which a temporary restraining order or other emergency relief is
sought. Consistent with current practice, magistrate judges shall continue to be
referred all pro se prisoner cases assigned to district judges and all §§ 2241 and
2254 habeas corpus petitions other than § 2254 death penalty petitions. Consistent
with current practice, in Social Security cases in which the parties do not consent
unanimously to dispositive jurisdiction by the magistrate judge to whom the case is
assigned initially, the magistrate judge shall prepare a report and recommendation.
After the period for objections to the report and recommendation expires, the Clerk
shall assign by random draw a district judge to review the report and
recommendation.
This Order supersedes the General Order for Referral of Civil Matters to the
United States Magistrate Judges entered on January 14,2013. Except as provided
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herein, all other local rules and standing orders dealing with the assignment of
cases remain unchanged. The procedure described in this Order applies only to
cases filed on or after January 2,2015.
DONE and ORDERED this the 2nd day of January, 2015.
~O~ CHIEF JUDGE
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