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3 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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5 STANDING ORDER FOR CIVIL JURY PRETRIAL AND TRIAL BEFORE
DISTRICT JUDGE TRINA L. THOMPSON
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8 INTRODUCTION
9 1. The parties must make every effort to raise and, if possible, resolve pretrial and trial
10 issues early. While the Court understands that trial is not entirely predictable, the parties must
11 frontload all evidentiary and legal disputes to the extent possible. Issues that surface unnecessarily
12 on the eve of or during trial waste the jury’s time and are strongly disfavored.
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13 MEET AND CONFER
14 2. At least 30 days before the final Pretrial Conference, lead counsel who will try the
15 case shall meet and confer with respect to the following subjects: (1) settlement of the case; (2)
16 preparation of the joint pretrial filings to be served and lodged pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil
17 Procedure 26(a)(3); and (3) clarifying and narrowing the contested issues for trial in order to
18 achieve a just, speedy, and efficient resolution of the case. Counsel in close geographical
19 proximity are encouraged to meet in person.
20 EXCHANGE OF EVIDENCE
21 3. At least 30 days before the Pretrial Conference, each party shall provide every other
22 party (but not the Court) with one set of all proposed exhibits, charts, schedules, summaries,
23 diagrams, and other similar documentary materials to be used in its case in chief at trial, together
24 with a complete list of all such proposed exhibits. These materials may be provided in electronic
25 form if the parties so agree. Voluminous exhibits shall be reduced by elimination of irrelevant
26 portions or through the use of summaries. Exhibits must be marked in accordance with
27 paragraphs 16–18 of this Order. All exhibits not provided are subject to exclusion in the
28 reasonable exercise of the Court’s discretion.
1 4. At least 30 days before the Pretrial Conference, each party shall provide every other
2 party (but not the Court) with (1) the names of all witnesses each party intends to call at trial, as
3 well as a brief description of the subject matter of their testimony; and (2) a list containing
4 citations to all evidence that a party might introduce at trial, other than that to be used solely for
5 impeachment or rebuttal, that was obtained from deposition testimony, interrogatory responses, or
6 responses to requests for admission. All witnesses and citations not identified are subject to
7 exclusion in the reasonable exercise of the Court’s discretion.
8 PRETRIAL FILINGS
9 5. Unless otherwise ordered, the parties shall file the documents listed in paragraphs
10 6–15 (i.e., joint pretrial statement and proposed order, proposed jury instructions, proposed voir
11 dire questions, proposed verdict forms, proposed statement of the case, and trial briefs) no later
12 than 14 days before the pretrial conference. Proposed jury instructions, voir dire questions, verdict
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13 forms, and proposed statements of the case should not be submitted in cases tried to the bench.
14 No later than 14 days before the final pretrial conference, the parties shall also submit the joint
15 proposed pretrial statement and proposed order, and any proposed jury instructions, voir dire
16 questions, verdict form(s), and statement of the case in Word format via email to Courtroom
17 Deputy, Robert McNamee, at
[email protected].
18 6. Digital courtesy copies of these materials (as well as any motions in limine,
19 oppositions to those motions, and/or statements of non-opposition) must be delivered to the
20 Clerk’s office on portable media (e.g., a flash drive or CD) by noon the day after filing. All
21 courtesy copies must be marked with the ECF stamp (case number, document number, date, and
22 page number) on the top of each page. The portable media shall be clearly labeled with Judge
23 Thompson’s name and the case number.
24 7. Joint Pretrial Statement and Proposed Order. The parties shall file a joint
25 pretrial statement and proposed order, which must contain the following information:
26 a) Substance of the Action. A brief description of the parties, the substance of claims and
27 defenses that remain to be decided, and the operative pleadings that raise the issues.
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1 b) Relief Requested. A detailed statement of all requested relief, particularly itemizing all
2 elements of damages claimed.
3 c) Undisputed Facts. A plain and concise statement of all relevant facts to which the
4 parties will stipulate for incorporation into the trial record without supporting
5 testimony or exhibits. The parties shall exercise good faith in stipulating to facts that
6 are not reasonably disputable.
7 d) Disputed Factual Issues. A plain and concise list of the issues of fact that are contested
8 and remain to be litigated at trial.
9 e) Agreed Statement. A statement assessing whether all or part of the action may be
10 presented upon an agreed statement of facts.
11 f) Stipulations. A statement of stipulations requested or proposed.
12 g) Witnesses to be Called. A list of all witnesses likely to be called at trial, other than
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13 solely for impeachment or rebuttal, together with a brief statement following each
14 name describing the substance of the testimony to be given. No party shall be
15 permitted to call any witness in its case in chief who is not disclosed in its pretrial
16 statement unless the Court grants leave for good cause.
17 h) Exhibits, Schedules, and Summaries. A list of all documents or other items to be
18 offered as exhibits at trial, other than solely for impeachment or rebuttal, and a brief
19 statement following each that describes: (1) its substance or purpose; (2) the identity of
20 the sponsoring witness; and (3) whether the parties have stipulated to its admissibility
21 and, if they have not, the objection to its admission, the grounds for the objection, and
22 the position of the offering party. If the list is voluminous, Section (h) should be
23 attached as an appendix to the joint pretrial statement and proposed order.
24 i) Disputed Legal Issues. Without extended legal argument, a concise statement of each
25 disputed point of law concerning liability or relief, citing supporting statutes and
26 decisions.
27 j) Pending Motions or Matters. A statement of any motions or other matters that must be
28 resolved prior to trial.
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1 k) Bifurcation or Separate Trial of Issues. A statement of whether either party requests
2 bifurcation or a separate trial of specific issues and why.
3 l) Use of Discovery Responses. A list containing citations to all evidence that a party
4 might introduce at trial, other than that to be used solely for impeachment or rebuttal,
5 that was obtained from deposition testimony, interrogatory responses, or responses to
6 requests for admission. Counsel shall state any objections to the use of these materials,
7 the grounds for the objections, the position of the offering party, and shall certify that
8 the parties have conferred regarding such objections. If the list is voluminous, Section
9 (l) should be attached as an appendix to the joint pretrial statement and proposed order.
10 m) Estimate of Trial Time. An estimate of the number of court days needed for the
11 presentation of each party’s case, indicating possible reductions in time through
12 proposed stipulations, agreed statements of facts, or expedited means of presenting
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13 testimony and exhibits.
14 n) Settlement Discussion. A brief summary of the status of settlement negotiations,
15 without indicating specific dollar amounts, and an indication of whether further
16 negotiations are likely to be productive and what, if anything, would facilitate
17 settlement.
18 o) Miscellaneous. Any other matters that will facilitate the just, speedy, and efficient
19 resolution of the action.
20 8. Binding Effect of the Joint Pretrial Statement. The joint pretrial statement and
21 proposed order shall include the following language directly above the signature lines:
22 The foregoing admissions having been made by the parties, and the
parties having specific the foregoing issues of fact and law
23 remaining to be litigated, this order shall supplement the pleadings
and govern the course of trial of this case, unless modified by the
24 Court to prevent manifest injustice.
25 9. Proposed Jury Instructions. The parties shall meet and confer and file a joint set
26 of proposed jury instructions, arranged in the order the parties propose the Court give the
27 instructions. The parties should use the Ninth Circuit Model Jury Instructions where possible or
28 the California Civil Jury Instructions (CACI) where applicable. Any modifications to a form
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1 instruction must be plainly identified to the Court. Any language a party proposes to be removed
2 from a model instruction must be designated with a strikethrough and language proposed to be
3 added to a model instruction must be underlined.
4 10. The parties should include proposed text for all proposed jury instructions, even for
5 any form preliminary instructions, general instructions, or concluding instructions on which they
6 agree. Instructions upon which the parties agree shall be identified as “Stipulated Instruction No.
7 __ Re _______,” with blanks filled in as appropriate.
8 11. If, after meeting and conferring in good faith, the parties cannot agree on a
9 proposed jury instruction, each party’s proposed version shall be provided and identified as
10 “Disputed Instruction No. __ Re _______, Offered by ________,” with blanks filled in as
11 appropriate. All proposed versions of the same instruction shall bear the same number. Following
12 each set of proposed versions of a disputed instruction, each party shall explain, in no more than
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13 one page, why the Court should give that party’s proposed instruction, including supporting case
14 citations. If the parties dispute whether a particular instruction should be given at all, the
15 proponent of the instruction shall provide proposed language, identified as “Disputed Instruction
16 No. __ Re _______, Offered by ________,” with blanks filled in as appropriate. Following the
17 disputed instruction, each party shall explain, in no more than one page why the instruction should
18 or should not be given.
19 12. Proposed Voir Dire Questions. In cases tried before a jury, the parties are
20 expected to meet and confer and file a joint set of proposed voir dire questions for the Court to
21 ask. Unless otherwise indicated, the Court will conduct voir dire.
22 13. If, after meeting and conferring in good faith, there are proposed questions about
23 which the parties do not agree, each party may submit a list of disputed proposed questions they
24 wish to be put to the venire. The proponent of each disputed question shall provide proposed
25 language, identified as “Disputed Question No. __, Offered by ________,” with blanks filled in as
26 appropriate. No argument concerning why a disputed proposed question should or should not be
27 asked shall be submitted.
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1 14. Note that during voir dire the Court will elicit the jurors’ basic biographical
2 information through its own questioning (e.g., current employment, marital status, past jury
3 service), so those subjects need not be included in the parties’ set of proposed questions.
4 15. Proposed Verdict Forms. The parties are expected to meet and confer and file a
5 joint proposed verdict form. If, after a good faith effort to meet and confer, the parties cannot
6 agree on a joint form, the parties may submit separate proposed verdict forms. If the verdict form
7 is disputed, each party shall explain, in no more than one page, why its proposed verdict form
8 should be given.
9 16. Proposed Statement of the Case. The parties shall jointly file a proposed
10 Statement of the Case to be read to the jury during voir dire. Unless the case is extremely
11 complex, this statement should not exceed one page (double-spaced).
12 17. Trial Briefs. Parties are not required to file trial briefs. If a party chooses to file a
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13 trial brief, it shall not be longer than five pages and must be filed at least seven days prior to the
14 commencement of trial. Trial briefs shall not duplicate the contents of the joint pretrial statement
15 and proposed order.
16 EXHIBITS
17 18. Each exhibit shall be pre-marked with a trial exhibit sticker (“Trial Exhibit
18 No.__”), not deposition exhibit label, and defendant’s exhibit numbers shall be sequenced to begin
19 after plaintiff’s exhibit numbers.
20 19. The parties shall agree on blocks of numbers to fit the needs of the case (e.g.,
21 Plaintiff has 1–100, Defendant has 101–200) and make a good faith effort to avoid marking the
22 same exhibit in their respective blocks. If the same exhibit is marked by more than one party, the
23 defendant shall withdraw the duplicative exhibit (but should not renumber its portion of the
24 exhibit list). Section (h) of the parties’ joint pretrial statement and proposed order must identify
25 the exhibit numbers of the exhibits withdrawn as duplicates.
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1 20. Exhibits shall be identified with tags in the format shown here;
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9 21. At least 21 days prior to the Pretrial Conference, the parties shall make a good faith
10 effort to stipulate to exhibits’ admissibility. If stipulation is not possible, the parties shall make
11 every effort to stipulate to at least authenticity and foundation absent a legitimate (not tactical)
12 objection.
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13 22. Unless otherwise ordered, at least seven days before trial, the parties must deliver
14 three sets of all pre-marked exhibits in clearly labeled three-ring binders to the Clerk’s office,
15 marked for the attention of the Courtroom Deputy, Robert McNamee. The quality, condition, and
16 labeling of the binders should be such that the Court can easily transport and review the binders’
17 contents. Whenever possible, the spine of a binder should not be wider than three inches.
18 23. At least three days prior to the first day of trial, the parties shall file form exhibit
19 and witness lists. The form exhibit list should include the following columns: (1) Exhibit
20 Number; (2) Brief Description; (3) Sponsoring Witness; (4) Date Marked for Identification (left
21 blank); and (5) Date Admitted Into Evidence (left blank). The form witness list should include the
22 following columns: (1) Witness Name; (2) Brief Summary of Testimony; and (3) Exhibits (left
23 blank).
24 24. The parties are encouraged to resolve as many trial issues by stipulation as
25 possible. The parties shall meet and confer no later than 21 days before the pretrial conference to
26 determine whether any evidentiary issues may be resolved by stipulation. No party may file a
27 motion in limine without first making a good faith effort to resolve the evidentiary issue with
28 opposing counsel.
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1 25. Motions in limine must be filed with the Court no later than 21 days prior to the
2 date set for the Pretrial Conference. Each party is limited to bringing five motions in limine.
3 Motions in limine cannot be used to request summary judgment or raise Daubert challenges unless
4 the Court has specifically granted prior approval. Each motion shall be no longer than five pages
5 and should address a single, separate topic. Motions should be clearly identified as
6 “___________’s Motion in Limine No. __ Re: ____________.” If the content of an exhibit is
7 necessary to the resolution of a motion in limine, that exhibit must be attached to a declaration in
8 support of the motion. No party filing a motion in limine should submit digital courtesy copies of
9 their motions to the Court until the parties file their pretrial filings 14 days before the Pretrial
10 conference.
11 26. Any party filing a motion in limine must first seek a stipulation from the opposing
12 party or parties to the relief requested in the motion. The Court ordinarily does not grant leave to
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13 file motions in limine under seal.
14 27. Any party opposing a motion in limine shall file its opposition papers (or statement
15 of non-opposition) no later than 14 days prior to the Pretrial Conference. Each opposition is
16 limited to five pages; the moving party shall not file a reply brief. Courtesy copies of all motions
17 in limine and oppositions must be included in the binder containing the parties’ pretrial filings in
18 the format described in paragraph five of this Order.
19 28. The motions will be heard at the Pretrial Conference or at such other time as the
20 Court may direct.
21 CONTINUANCES
22 29. Trial dates are firm once set by the Court. Continuances are disfavored. No
23 continuance of a scheduled trial date will be granted except by order of the Court in response to a
24 motion made in accordance with the provisions of Civil Local Rule 7. The Court will rarely
25 continue a trial because the parties have “settled in principle.” Unless otherwise ordered by the
26 Court, a stipulated dismissal will be required. Failure of a party to proceed with the trial on the
27 scheduled trial date may result in the assessment of jury costs and the imposition of appropriate
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1 sanctions, including dismissal or entry of default. Jury costs may be also assessed for failure to
2 provide the Court with timely notice of a settlement in accordance with Civil Local Rule 40-1.
3 TRIAL
4 30. Trial will be conducted from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Mondays through
5 Thursdays. Counsel must arrive by 8:00 a.m. each day, or earlier if directed by the Court, to
6 discuss any matters that need to be heard outside the presence of the jury. The jury will be called
7 at 8:30 a.m.
8 31. Should a daily transcript and/or real-time reporting be desired, the parties shall e-
9 file a transcript order form (CAND 435), at least 14 days before trial, and make arrangements with
10 Richard Duvall, Supervisor of the Court Reporting Services at (415) 522-2079, at least ten
11 calendar days prior to the trial date.
12 32. The courtroom is equipped with monitors and a sound system. Should the parties
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13 wish to utilize additional technology, the United States Marshals Service requires a court order to
14 allow equipment into the Courthouse. The parties must file a written request and proposed order
15 no later than seven days prior to the beginning of trial if they wish to bring any such technology
16 into the Courthouse. Parties should be prepared to fix any equipment, if necessary.
17 33. The parties shall disclose the witnesses whom they will call and the exhibits to be
18 introduced through those witnesses (except exhibits to be used solely for impeachment purposes)
19 by noon the day before the parties intend to call those witnesses. Failure to have a witness ready
20 to proceed at trial will usually constitute resting.
21 34. The Court strongly encourages the parties to permit junior lawyers to examine
22 witnesses and to have an important role at trial.
23 35. At the end of the trial day, the parties shall meet and confer regarding all exhibits
24 and demonstratives intended to be produced on the following day. Meeting and conferring via
25 email is not sufficient; the parties must meet in person or over the telephone. If the parties cannot
26 in good faith resolve all of their evidentiary disputes without the Court’s involvement, each party
27 shall file a single statement of five pages or less framing its position on the dispute(s) by midnight.
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1 If deposition designations are the subject of any unresolved disputes, the relevant deposition
2 excerpts must be attached to the parties’ statements.
3 36. Counsel must consult with the courtroom deputy, Robert McNamee, at the
4 beginning of the first day of trial regarding the procedure for tracking admitted exhibits and any
5 limitations thereon. If there are any disagreements between the parties regarding the status of the
6 exhibits, counsel shall bring them promptly to the Court’s attention. At the close of evidence,
7 before closing arguments, counsel must confer with the courtroom deputy to make sure the
8 exhibits in evidence are in good order. Counsel should also be prepared to upload all admitted
9 exhibits from a flash drive to the jury computer so that the jury may access the exhibits during
10 deliberation.
11 37. Upon the conclusion of the trial, each party shall retain its exhibits through the
12 appellate process. It is each party’s responsibility to make arrangements with the Clerk of Court
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13 to file the record on appeal.
14 IT IS SO ORDERED.
15 Dated: August 22, 2025
TRINA L. THOMPSON
16 United States District Judge
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1 APPENDIX A
2 CHRONOLOGICAL SUMMARY OF PRETRIAL EXCHANGES AND SUBMISSIONS
3 Date Event
4 Lead counsel to meet and confer regarding settlement, pretrial filings,
and narrowing of issues (¶ 2)
5 Provide all other parties with proposed exhibits, charts, schedules,
summaries, diagrams, and other similar documentary materials to be
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used case in chief at trial, as well as a list of those materials (¶ 3)
7 30 Days Before Provide all other parties (1) the names of all witnesses each party
intends to call at trial, as well as a brief description of the subject
8 Pretrial Conference
matter of their testimony; and (2) a list containing citations to all
9 evidence that a party might introduce at trial, other than that to be
used solely for impeachment or rebuttal, that was obtained from
10 deposition testimony, interrogatory responses, or responses to
requests for admission (¶ 4)
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File any motions in limine (¶¶ 24-26)
21 Days Before
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Pretrial Conference
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File joint pretrial statement and proposed order (¶ 7)
14 File proposed jury instructions (jury trial only) (¶¶ 9–11)
File proposed voir dire questions (jury trial only) (¶¶ 12–14)
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File proposed verdict forms (jury trial only) (¶ 15)
16 14 Days Before File proposed statement of the case (jury trial only) (¶ 16)
File oppositions/statements of non-opposition to motions in limine (¶
17 Pretrial Conference 27)
18 Email Word versions of the proposed joint pretrial statement and
proposed order, proposed jury instructions, voir dire questions,
19 verdict form(s), and statement of the case to
[email protected]. (¶ 5)
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Submit two binders to the Clerk’s office containing the joint pretrial
13 Days Before
21 statement and proposed order, any proposed jury instructions, voir
Pretrial Conference dire questions, verdict forms, statement of the case, and trial briefs, as
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well as all motions in limine, oppositions, and/or statements of non-
(by Noon) opposition (¶ 6)
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Submit a flash drive to the Clerk’s office containing the exhibits
24 identified in Section (h) of the parties’ joint pretrial statement and
25 7 Days Before Trial proposed order (and not already excluded by the Court in limine) (¶
7)
26 File trial brief, if any party wishes to do so (¶ 17)
File form exhibit and witness lists (¶ 23)
27 3 Days Before Trial
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