(a) All files and records of the court must remain in the custody of the clerk, and
records or papers belonging to the court’s files may not be taken from the clerk’s
custody without the court’s written permission, and then only after a receipt has
been signed by the person obtaining the record or paper.
(b) The clerk must mark and have safekeeping responsibility for all exhibits marked
and identified at trial or hearing. Unless there is some special reason why the
originals should be retained, the court may order exhibits to be returned to the
party who offered them upon the filing of true copies of the exhibits in place of
the originals.
(c) Unless the court orders otherwise, the clerk must continue to have custody of the
exhibits until the judgment has become final and the deadlines for filing a notice
of appeal and motion for new trial have passed, or appeal proceedings have
terminated, but in no event sooner than 2 years after the mandate issues or the
appeal is otherwise terminated.
(d) If no appeal is taken, after final judgment has been entered and the deadlines for
filing a notice of appeal and a motion for a new trial have passed, or upon the
filing of a stipulation waiving the right to appeal and to a new trial, any party
may, upon 21 days’ prior written notice to all parties, withdraw any exhibit
originally produced by it unless some other party or person files prior notice with
the clerk of a claim to the exhibit. If a notice of claim is filed, the clerk must not
deliver the exhibit unless both the party who produced it and the claimant consent
in writing, or until the court has determined who is entitled to the exhibit.
(e) If exhibits are not withdrawn within 21 days after the clerk notifies the parties to
claim the exhibits, the clerk must destroy or otherwise dispose of the exhibits as
ordered by the court.
PART V—SPECIAL PROCEEDINGS AND APPEALS
LSR 1-1. APPLICATIONS TO PROCEED IN FORMA PAUPERIS; FORM OF
APPLICATION
Any person who is unable to prepay the fees in a civil case may apply to the court for
leave to proceed in forma pauperis. The application must be made on the form provided by the
court and must include a financial affidavit disclosing the applicant’s income, assets, expenses,
and liabilities.
LSR 1-2. INMATES: ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR APPLICATIONS TO
PROCEED IN FORMA PAUPERIS
When submitting an application to proceed in forma pauperis, an incarcerated or
institutionalized person must simultaneously submit a certificate from the institution certifying
the amount of funds currently held in the applicant’s trust account at the institution and the net
deposits in the applicant’s account for the six months before the date of submission of the
application. If the applicant has been at the institution for fewer than six months, the certificate
must show the account’s activity for this shortened period.
LSR 1-3. GRANT OR DENIAL OF APPLICATION TO PROCEED IN FORMA
PAUPERIS
(a) The court may grant or deny an application to proceed in forma pauperis, or it
may impose a partial filing fee if the applicant has money or assets.
(b) If a partial filing fee is required, the court may grant additional time to pay it.
Installment payments of a partial filing fee will not be accepted. In a civil-rights
action, the applicant must pay the full partial filing fee before the court will order
service of process. If the case is a petition or motion for post-conviction relief,
the applicant must be allowed to proceed in forma pauperis during the interim
period before the partial filing fee is paid. An applicant’s failure to pay the fee
before the expiration of the time granted will be cause for dismissal of the case.
LSR 1-4. APPLICANT FOR FORMA PAUPERIS STATUS NEED ONLY FILE
ORIGINAL COMPLAINT, PETITION, OR MOTION
A person applying for forma pauperis status need only submit to the clerk the original of
any petition, complaint, or motion under 28 U.S.C. § 2255, along with the application to proceed
in forma pauperis.
LSR 1-5. REVOCATION OF LEAVE TO PROCEED IN FORMA PAUPERIS
The court may, either on the motion of a party or sua sponte, after affording an
opportunity to be heard, revoke leave to proceed in forma pauperis if the party to whom leave
was granted becomes capable of paying the complete filing fee or has willfully misstated
information in the application to proceed in forma pauperis or affidavit, or has otherwise abused
the privilege of proceeding in forma pauperis.
LSR 1-6. EXPENSES OF LITIGATION
The granting of an application to proceed in forma pauperis does not relieve the applicant
of the responsibility to pay the expenses of litigation that are not covered by 28 U.S.C. § 1915.
LSR 2-1. PRO SE CIVIL-RIGHTS COMPLAINTS; FORM OF COMPLAINT
A civil-rights complaint filed by a person who is not represented by an attorney must be
submitted on the form provided by this court or must be legible and contain substantially all the
information called for by the court’s form.
LSR 3-1. PETITIONS FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS; FORM OF PETITION
A petition for writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 must be on the form supplied
by the court or must be legible and substantially follow either that form or the form appended to
the Rules Governing Section 2254 Cases in the United States District Courts.
LSR 3-2. PETITIONS FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS; PAGE LIMITS
(a) The page limits imposed by LR 7-3 do not apply in cases in which the petitioner
is sentenced to death.
(b) In cases in which the petitioner is not sentenced to death, there is no page limit
with respect to habeas corpus petitions, answers, and replies to answers. In such
cases, motions, responses to motions, and replies in support of motions are limited
to 30 pages, excluding exhibits.
(c) The court looks with disfavor on motions to exceed page limits, so permission to
do so will not be routinely granted. A motion to file a document exceeding the
page limit in this rule will be granted only upon a showing of good cause. In a
habeas corpus case, a motion for leave to file a document exceeding a page limit
may be filed concurrently with, but separately from, the subject document. The
subject document, exceeding the page limit, must include a table of contents and a
table of authorities. If the court denies the motion, it may order the document
stricken from the record, and re-filed in compliance with the page limit, or in
compliance with an extended page limit set by the court.
LSR 3-3. PETITIONS FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS; EXHIBITS
(a) The petitioner may refer, in the petition, to documents that he/she reasonably
believes the respondents will be required to file under Rule 5 of the Rules
Governing Section 2254 Cases in the United States District Courts, without the
petitioner having to attach those documents to the petition. The petitioner may
not, however, state a claim for habeas corpus relief by incorporating language
from a document not attached to the petition; if the petitioner intends to state a
claim by incorporation of language from a separate document, that document
must be filed with the petition as an exhibit.
(b) The cover sheet for each exhibit need only reference the number or letter of the
exhibit; the cover sheet need not include a descriptor of the exhibit.
(c) The court disfavors the filing of duplicate exhibits. When amending a petition,
the petitioner need not re-file his/her exhibits, but may refer to exhibits filed
previously in the case. A party may, at any time, refer to any exhibits filed in the
case by that party or any other party.
(d) The petitioner must number or letter his/her exhibits sequentially throughout the
course of the action. Likewise, the respondents must, separately, number or letter
their exhibits sequentially throughout the course of the action.
(e) In cases in which the petitioner appears pro se, when referring to an exhibit, the
respondents must refer to the exhibit both by reference to the document and page
numbering in the electronic filing system and by the exhibit number or letter and
the page numbering of the exhibit, such that the reference is meaningful to the pro
se petitioner, without access to the electronic case filing system.
LSR 3-4. PETITIONS FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS; CASE MANAGEMENT
The court will set the schedule for motions, an answer, a reply, and other proceedings in
each case, in a scheduling order developed for the individual case.
LSR 3-5. SERVICE BY PRO SE PETITIONERS IN HABEAS CORPUS CASES
In cases in which the petitioner appears pro se, the petitioner need not serve upon the
respondents copies of documents filed in the case after the respondents have appeared. A
document filed by a pro se petitioner, after the respondents have appeared, will be considered
served on the respondents when electronically filed.
LSR 3-6 SUBSTITUTIONS OF COUNSEL IN HABEAS CORPUS CASES
(a) In cases in which the respondents are represented by one or more attorneys in the
office of the Nevada Attorney General, substitutions of counsel from one attorney
in the office of the Nevada Attorney General to another attorney in that office
need not be made by motion or stipulation, as is otherwise required by LR IA
11-6, but must be made by the filing of a notice of the substitution.
(b) In cases in which the petitioner is represented by one or more attorneys in a
federal public defender’s office, substitutions of counsel from one attorney in the
federal public defender’s office to another attorney in that office need not be
made by motion or stipulation, as is otherwise required by LR IA 11-6, but must
be made by the filing of a notice of the substitution.
LSR 4-1. MOTIONS UNDER 28 U.S.C. § 2255; FORM OF MOTION
A motion under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 must be on the form provided by this court or must be
legible and substantially follow either that form or the form appended to the Rules Governing
Section 2255 Proceedings for the United States District Courts.
LSR 4-2. SERVICE BY PRO SE MOVANT IN PROCEEDINGS REGARDING
MOTIONS UNDER 28 U.S.C. § 2255
In proceedings regarding a motion under 28 U.S.C. § 2255, in which the movant appears
pro se, the movant need not serve upon the respondent copies of documents filed in the case after
the respondent has appeared. A document filed in such a case by the pro se movant, after the
respondent has appeared, will be considered served on the respondent when electronically filed.
LSR 5-1. DEATH PENALTY CASES; CAPTION
In death penalty cases, the caption of any application to proceed in forma pauperis,
petition for writ of habeas corpus, or motion for post-conviction relief must include the following
below the title of the document: “DEATH PENALTY CASE.”
LSR 5-2. DEATH PENALTY CASES; SCHEDULED EXECUTION DATE
(a) In death penalty cases, the date of any scheduled execution must be included at
the beginning of any application to proceed in forma pauperis, petition for writ of
habeas corpus, or motion for post-conviction relief.
(b) In death penalty cases, if, after the case is initiated, and after the respondents have
appeared, the execution of the petitioner is scheduled, the respondents must,
within seven days after the scheduling of the execution, file a notice stating the
scheduled execution date.
LSR 5-3. DEATH PENALTY CASES; TRANSCRIPT OF EVIDENTIARY
HEARING
In death penalty cases, the court must order a transcript of any evidentiary hearing for
purposes of appellate review.
LSR 5-4. DEATH PENALTY CASES; BUDGETING OF APPOINTED COUNSEL
The Judicial Council of the Ninth Circuit has mandated prospective budgeting of
petitioners’ counsel in all capital habeas corpus cases in which CJA counsel is appointed. CJA
counsel appointed in capital habeas corpus cases in this court will be subject to such budgeting.
LSR 6-1. APPEALS; APPEAL BOND
The appellant will not be required to file a bond or provide other security to ensure
payment of costs on appeal in a civil case unless the court, on a motion or sua sponte, orders a
cost bond or security and fixes its amount.
LSR 6-2. APPEALS; DESIGNATION AND PREPARATION OF REPORTER AND
RECORDER’S TRANSCRIPTS
The party filing the notice of appeal must identify by name the court reporter or recorder
(or the recording number when proceedings before the magistrate judge are recorded without the
presence of a reporter or recorder) when designating transcripts on appeal. If more than one
court reporter or recorder reported matters designated, an ordering form must be completed for
each court reporter or recorder and each form must specify which portions of the designated
transcript a particular court reporter or recorder are responsible for transcribing. The clerk must
arrange for the transcription of any designated recordings of a magistrate judge’s proceedings.
LSR 6-3. APPEALS; CLERK’S RECORD ON APPEAL; DESIGNATION, AND
COSTS OF REPRODUCTION
(a) The court has delegated to the Clerk of the Court the authority to determine when
the original clerk’s record or any part of it is required to be kept for use in the
district court. When the clerk determines that some or all of the record will be
retained, the clerk will provide notice to all parties and give them an opportunity
to designate which parts of the record should be reproduced for transmission to
the court of appeals.
(b) The appellant must pay the costs of reproducing the designated documents unless:
(1) The appellant is authorized to appeal in forma pauperis, or
(2) A cross appeal is filed and the court transmits a “joint” record. The costs
of reproduction must be borne equally by the appellant(s) and cross
appellant(s).
