(a) A defendant must file and serve the following “Notice and Warning to
Plaintiff,” in a document separate from the motion and from the brief, at the time
the defendant files and serves any motion for summary judgment against a plaintiff
who is proceeding pro se and who is incarcerated or detained at any time before
filing a response to the motion:
The court requires this Notice and Warning to be given to all pro se
prisoner litigants when an opposing party files a motion for summary
judgment.
Defendant __________ [name defendant, or state “all
defendants”] has/have moved for summary judgment by which
[appropriate pronoun] seek[s] to have your remaining claims
dismissed and judgment entered against you. A motion for summary
judgment under Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure will,
if granted, end your case [as to the following claims:
__________________].
Rule 56 tells you what you must do in order to oppose a motion
for summary judgment. Generally, summary judgment must be
granted when there is no genuine issue of material fact—that is, if
there is no real dispute about any fact that would affect the result of
your case, the party who asked for summary judgment is entitled to
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D.Mont L.R. 56.2 Motion Filed Against Self-Represented Prisoner
judgment as a matter of law, which will end your case. When a party
you are suing makes a motion for summary judgment that is properly
supported by declarations or other sworn testimony, you cannot
simply rely on what your complaint says. Instead, you must set out
specific facts in the record, including depositions, documents,
affidavits or declarations, stipulations, admissions, interrogatory
answers, or other materials, as provided in Rule 56(c), or comply with
Rule 56(d), to contradict the facts shown in the other party’s
declarations and documents and show that there is a genuine issue of
material fact for trial. If you do not submit your own evidence in
opposition, summary judgment, if appropriate, may be entered against
you. If summary judgment is granted, judgment will be entered
against you and there will be no trial.
Additionally, a local rule of the District of Montana, D. Mont.
L. R. 56.1(b), requires that “[a]ny party opposing a motion for
summary judgment must file a Statement of Disputed Facts setting
forth the specific facts, if any, that establish a genuine issue of
material fact precluding summary judgment in favor of the moving
party.”
(b) Failure to provide the above Notice and Warning will result in denial of
the motion for summary judgment, regardless of whether the motion is fully
briefed.
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D.Mont L.R. 56.2 Motion Filed Against Self-Represented Prisoner
Civil Rule 58. Entering Judgment
