IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE
WESTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
____________ DIVISION
________________________, )
)
Plaintiff(s), )
)
vs. ) Case No. _____________-MDH
)
________________________, )
)
Defendant(s). )
PROPOSED SCHEDULING ORDER/DISCOVERY PLAN
Pursuant to Rules 16(b) and 26(f) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the parties are
Ordered to comply with the following Schedule and Order:
A. PLEADINGS.
1. Any motion to join additional parties shall be filed on or before
_________________.
2. Any motion to amend the pleadings shall be filed on or before
_________________.
B. MEDIATION AND ASSESSMENT PROGRAM (MAP)
In cases assigned to the Court’s Mediation and Assessment Program (MAP), the MAP
General Order requires that parties assigned to the outside mediator category electronically file
the Designation of Mediator within fourteen (14) calendar days after the Rule 26 meeting and
mediate the case within seventy-five (75) calendar days after the Rule 26 meeting. The parties
are reminded to consult the MAP General Order, Section V, regarding general procedures and
requests for extensions of time related to the Mediation and Assessment Program.
C. DISCOVERY.
The parties are ORDERED to work cooperatively and communicate regularly so that
discovery can be completed in as cost-efficient manner as possible. Counsel shall conduct
themselves consistent with their roles as officers of the court and to treat each other, all parties,
and witnesses in a professional, courteous and respectful manner. Communication from
opposing counsel shall receive prompt and responsive replies.
The parties are expected to review the Principles for the Discovery of Electronically
Stored Information prior to the Rule 26(f) conference and to discuss the corresponding Checklist
for Rule 26(f) Meet and Confer during the conference. Both documents are available on the
Court’s website under “District Court Local Rules, ESI Principles, Procedures & Fees
https://www.mow.uscourts.gov/district/rules.
All pretrial discovery authorized by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure shall be
conducted consistent with the Rules of Civil Procedure and the Local Rules of the Western
District of Missouri. Discovery shall be completed on or before _________________. This
means that all discovery shall be completed, not simply submitted, on the date specified by this
paragraph. Accordingly, all discovery requests and depositions shall be submitted and/or
scheduled prior to the date specified in this paragraph and shall allow sufficient time for
completion within the time specified by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Local Court
Rules, and/or orders of this Court. The Court reserves the right to exercise control over the
taking of depositions.
D. EXPERTS.
1. The plaintiff shall designate any expert witnesses on or before
_________________, and the defendant shall designate any expert witnesses on or before
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_________________. This paragraph applies to all witnesses from whom expert opinions will
be elicited, regardless of whether or not the witness was specially retained to provide trial
testimony. This includes any person who may present evidence under Rules 702, 703 or 705 of
the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
2. Along with each party’s designation of expert witnesses, each party shall provide
the other parties with an affidavit from each expert witness designated pursuant to paragraph 1
above. See FRCP 26(a)(2)(B). The affidavit shall include a complete statement of all opinions to
be expressed and the basis and reasons therefor, the data or other information considered by the
witness in forming the opinions, any exhibits to be used as a summary of or support for the
opinions, the qualifications of the witness (including a list of all publications authored by the
witness within the preceding ten years), the compensation to be paid for the study and testimony,
and a listing of any other cases in which the witness has testified as an expert at trial or by
deposition within the preceding four years. The expert’s testimony will be limited to opinions
and information contained in the report and in any depositions that might be taken.
3. With respect to treating physicians, the requirements of paragraph 2 above and
FRCP 26(a)(2)(B) may be satisfied by providing a copy of all the treating physician’s files,
records and notes relating to the treating physician’s patient to the opposing party. For the
purpose of this paragraph, a “treating physician” is a doctor (including psychiatrist, dentist or
other practitioner of the healing arts) retained by a party for the primary purpose of providing
care and treatment and not retained for the primary purpose of providing testimony at trial. Any
testimony offered by a treating physician will be limited to information appearing in his/her files,
records and notes relating to the patient unless additional opinions are disclosed in an affidavit or
in the physician’s deposition as described in paragraph 2 above.
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4. Experts will be made available for deposition in the order in which they are
disclosed and within thirty (30) days of the date they are disclosed unless otherwise agreed upon
by the parties.
E. DISCOVERY MOTIONS.
Absent extraordinary circumstances, all discovery motions will be filed on or before
_________________. See Local Rule 37.1 for procedures that must be followed before filing a
discovery motion. The Court will not entertain any discovery motion absent full compliance
with Local Rule 37.1. Any discovery motion filed without complying with Local Rule 37.1 will
be denied. Prior to bringing any discovery dispute before the Court, the parties are reminded to
consult the Principles for the Discovery of Electronically Stored Information available on the
Court’s website under “District Court Local Rules, ESI Principles, Procedures & Fees
https://www.mow.uscourts.gov/district/rules. In the event that a teleconference is needed, my
courtroom deputy may be reached at 417-865-3741. All teleconference requests should be
directed to her. Each party to the dispute shall fax a description of the discovery dispute, not to
exceed one page in length, to the Court at 417-865-2618, and to opposing counsel at least 24
hours before the teleconference.
F. BUSINESS RECORDS.
All parties must notify all other parties of any business records they intend to “self-
authenticate” pursuant to Federal Rules of Evidence 803(6), 902(11) and 902(12) on or before
_________________. A Certificate of Service signifying compliance shall be filed with the
Court.
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G. DAUBERT MOTIONS.
All motions to strike expert designations or preclude expert testimony premised on
Daubert v. Merrill Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 509 U.S. 579 (1993) shall be filed on or before
_________________. The deadline for filing motions in limine does not apply to these motions.
Failure to file a Daubert motion prior to this deadline will constitute a waiver of any arguments
based on Daubert.
H. DISPOSITIVE MOTIONS.
All dispositive motions, except those under FRCP 12(h)(2) or (3), shall be filed on or
before _________________. All motions for summary judgment shall comply with Local Rule
56.1.
I. EXTENSIONS OF TIME.
1. All motions for extension of time pursuant to FRCP 6(b) or FRCP 31, 33, 34 and
36 must state:
a. The date when the pleading, response or other action is/was first due;
b. The number of previous extensions and the date the last extension expires;
c. The cause for the requested extension, including a statement as to why the
action due has not been completed in the allotted time; and
d. Whether the requested extension is approved or opposed by opposing
counsel (agreement by counsel to a requested extension is not binding on
the Court).
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J. TRIAL SETTING.
The Court will schedule a telephone conference to set this case for trial after the Court
has ruled on dispositive motions. If dispositive motions are not being filed, a Notice shall be
filed after the close of discovery requesting a telephone conference to set the case for trial.
(Rev. 09/22/2023)
1. Do NOT add a signature line for the Judge.
2. Add Attorney Signature Blocks.
3. This form should be completed and filed with the Court through the EM/ECF system
using Civil – Other Filings – Other Documents – Proposed Scheduling Order.
4. A copy of your filing should be e-mailed to Judge Harpool’s Courtroom Deputy in Word
format.
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