June 2026
INDIVIDUAL PRACTICES OF
JUDGE BRIAN M. COGAN
United States District Court
Eastern District of New York
225 Cadman Plaza East
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Chambers: 718-613-2230
Fax: 718-613-2236
Unless otherwise ordered by Judge Cogan, matters before this Court shall be conducted in
accordance with the following practices:
I. Communications with Chambers
A. Docketing, Scheduling or Calendar Matters
Criminal and Civil Cases: Call Courtroom Deputy and Case Manager Tasha
Townsend at (718) 613-2235 between 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
As to sentencing scheduling issues, refer to Section VI below.
To request an adjournment or extension of time, refer to subsection E below.
B. Letters
Except as provided below, communications with Chambers shall be by letter
electronically filed with the Court, with copies simultaneously delivered or mailed
to any pro se litigants. NO HARD COPIES OF LETTERS, INCLUDING
LETTERS REQUESTING EXTENSIONS OR ADJOURNMENTS, SHALL BE
DELIVERED TO CHAMBERS OR TO THE COURT.
Counsel must provide a brief description of the subject matter of the letter in the
ECF entry field, e.g., “Joint Letter in connection with Initial Status Conference,”
not simply, “Letter,” so that the docket remains intelligible.
Counsel shall not copy the Court on correspondence between and among them.
For letters concerning discovery disputes, refer to Section III.B.1. below.
C. Telephone calls
Telephone calls to Chambers as to scheduling matters or emergency matters only
are permitted between 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Do not call Chambers with
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procedural questions that are covered by the Local Rules of this Court and the
Federal Rules of Civil or Criminal Procedure.
D. Faxes
Counsel should be aware that ECF filings are closely monitored 24/7, and are
likely to be reviewed more promptly than faxes. There should therefore be no
reason for faxes.
For attorneys who doubt this, faxes to Chambers are permitted only for urgent
matters, and only if copies are simultaneously faxed or delivered to all counsel.
Do not follow with a hard copy.
In no event are faxes longer than ten pages permitted without prior authorization.
E. Request for Adjournments or Extensions of Time in Civil Cases
1. All requests for adjournments or extensions of time must be by ECF letter only
(except for pro se litigants) and must state:
a. The original date;
b. The number of previous requests for adjournment or extension;
c. Whether these previous requests were granted or denied;
d. Whether the adversary consents, and, if not, the reasons by the applicant,
and by the adversary, for and against the relief requested; and
e. All other dates previously scheduled, including dates for conferences with
the Court, and a suggested modified schedule, agreed to by all other counsel; and
f. The grounds for the extension or adjournment. The consent of the adverse
party is not a sufficient ground for an extension or adjournment.
Absent an emergency, a request for adjournment of a court appearance must be
made in writing at least 48 hours prior to the scheduled appearance.
2. Discovery extensions in civil cases will not be granted based on an opponent’s
or non-party’s non-compliance with discovery obligations unless the movant
has exhausted, promptly upon the non-compliance, all legal remedies to obtain
compliance. Failure to timely request relief for a party’s non-compliance may
result in a waiver of the requested discovery.
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II. Electronic Case Filing (“ECF”)
A. All documents in civil actions shall be filed electronically. Orders will be posted
electronically, and parties not registered on ECF will not receive them.
B. All requests for relief from the Court, whether by letter or formal motion papers,
shall be designated as a “motion” on ECF. In addition, the ECF entry line must
designate the subject matter of the letter or motion, e.g., “letter motion requesting
extension of time to respond to interrogatories,” not simply “letter,” so that the
docket sheet for the case remains intelligible.
C. Pro se parties are exempt from mandatory ECF filing. However, (1) parties
represented by counsel must file documents electronically, even if that party’s
adversary is pro se; and (2) pro se parties who have filed consent to electronic
notification in any other form shall not receive notification in any other form. For
questions about filing and serving documents in cases in which one or more parties
are proceeding pro se, contact the Pro Se Office at 718-613-2665.
D. The filing of Affidavits of Service as to any papers other than the summons and
complaint is prohibited, except in pro se cases. Filing on ECF constitutes service of
papers other than the summons and complaint, although attorneys or pro se litigants
may wish to agree on additional service by mail or delivery as a mutual
accommodation.
E. State Court records in habeas corpus cases under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 must have each
portion plainly labeled on ECF, not simply listed as an “Exhibit,” in a manner
substantially similar to the following:
ANSWER to Complaint by John Lempke. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit Hearing
Minutes I, # 2 Exhibit Hearing Minutes II, # 3 Exhibit Plea Minutes, # 4 Exhibit
Sentence Minutes, # 5 Exhibit Brief on Appeal, # 6 Exhibit Respondent Brief on
Appeal, # 7 Exhibit Pro Se Supplemental Brief, # 8 Exhibit Respondent Pro Se
Supplemental Brief, # 9 Exhibit Leave Letter, # 10 Exhibit Opposition to Leave
Letter, # 11 Exhibit Appellate Division Decision, # 12 Exhibit Court of Appeals
Decision)
or
STATE COURT RECORD (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A Suppression Hearing,
# 2 Exhibit B1 Trial Jury Selection, # 3 Exhibit B2 Trial 1-207, # 4 Exhibit B3 Trial
208-390, # 5 Exhibit B4 Trial 391-518, # 6Exhibit C Sentencing, # 7 Exhibit D1
Direct Appeal Defendant's Brief, # 8 Exhibit D2 Direct Appeal People's Brief,
# 9 Exhibit D3 Direct Appeal AD Decision, # 10 Exhibit D4 Direct Appeal Leave
Appl, # 11 Exhibit D5 Direct Appeal Leave Opp, # 12 Exhibit D6 Direct Appeal
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Leave Denial, # 13 Exhibit E1 NY CPL 440 Motion, # 14 Exhibit E2 NY CPL 440
Opp, # 15 Exhibit E3 NY CPL 440 Reply, # 16Exhibit E4 NY CPL 440 Decision,
# 17 Exhibit E5 NY CPL 440 AD Leave Appl, # 18 Exhibit E6 NY CPL 440 AD
Leave Opp, # 19 Exhibit E7 NY CPL 440 AD Leave Denial, # 20 Exhibit E8 NY
CPL 440 NY CoA Leave Appl, # 21 Exhibit E9 NY CPL 440 NY CoA Leave Opp,
# 22 Exhibit E10 NY CPL 440 NY CoA Leave Dismissal).
The following format will be rejected and refiling required:
STATE COURT RECORD (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit State Court Record,
# 2 Exhibit State Court Record, # 3 Exhibit State Court Record, # 4 Exhibit State
Court Record, # 5 Exhibit State Court Record, # 6 Exhibit State Court Record,
# 7 Exhibit State Court Record, # 8 Exhibit State Court Record, # 9Exhibit State
Court Record, # 10 Exhibit State Court Record, # 11 Exhibit State Court Record)
F. For questions regarding ECF, call 718-613-2610. For technical assistance, call 718-
613-2290. Attorneys should also refer to the Court’s website:
https://www.nyed.uscourts.gov
III. Pleadings and Motions in Civil Cases
Motion Practices At A Glance
Motion Returnable: Any day the Court is open (counsel
should not appear)
Oral Argument: Note “Oral Argument Requested” in
the caption of Notice of Motion or the
opposing memorandum
Filing Rules: In accordance with ECF Filing System
Courtesy Copies: No
A. Amended Complaints
1. When filing an amended complaint, counsel must attach a redline (in
PDF form) indicating the differences between the previously-filed complaint and
the amended complaint.
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B. Pre-Motion Conferences
1. For discovery motions, counsel must first describe their disputes in a
single letter, jointly composed. Separate and successive letters will not be
reviewed. Strict adherence to Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(a)(1), the meet and confer rule, is
required, and should be described in the joint submission as to time, place and
duration, naming the counsel involved in the discussion.
2. For all other motions except (1) for provisional remedies,
reconsideration, and post-judgment relief, (2) motions in habeas corpus, social
security, and bankruptcy appeals, (3) motions for attorneys’ fees, (4) motions in
limine, (5) motions for sanctions, and (6) motions by non-parties or proposed
intervenors, a pre-motion conference is required before a party may file any
motion. Parties must request a pre-motion conference in writing by ECF. The
moving party shall submit a detailed letter not to exceed three pages in length
setting forth the basis for the anticipated motion and simultaneously serve the
request on all counsel. Parties so served shall serve and file a detailed letter
response, not to exceed three pages, within five days from service of the
notification letter, unless the Court directs otherwise.
3. Counsel attending the pre-motion conference must be thoroughly
familiar with the merits of their position regarding the proposed motion. The pre-
motion conference is often the only opportunity to orally argue the motion.
Counsel should also anticipate a schedule that will require the filing of their
motion within a short time after the conference (usually two weeks).
C. Motion Papers
Motion papers shall be filed promptly. Do not hold motion papers until all papers
are complete. In other words, the Court does not follow a “bundling rule.”
1. Unless prior permission has been granted, memoranda of law in support
of or in opposition to motions, if filed by an attorney or prepared with a computer,
may not exceed 8,750 words, and reply briefs may not exceed 3,500 words.
These limits do not include the caption, any index, table of contents, table of
authorities, signature blocks, or any required certificates, but do include material
contained in footnotes or endnotes. The briefs shall be double spaced, with Times
New Roman 12-point font and one-inch margins. All memoranda 10 pages or
longer shall contain a table of contents and table of authorities. Requests to file
memoranda exceeding the word count set forth herein must be made in writing
five days prior to the due date, except with respect to reply briefs, in which case
the written request must be made at least one day prior to the due date.
2. PDF documents submitted to the Court must be text-searchable.
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3. If filed by a party who is not represented by an attorney and handwritten
or prepared with a typewriter, briefs in support of and in response to a motion
may not exceed 25 pages, and reply briefs may not exceed 10 pages.
4. Affidavits or affirmations shall not be accepted on motions unless they
are confined to factual averments. Attorney’s affidavits or affirmations shall not
be accepted unless: (a) the facts addressed are within the personal knowledge of
the attorney, such as in a discovery dispute; or (b) the attorney is authenticating
documents and the attorney reasonably believes that authentication is not in issue.
Witness or party affidavits will not be accepted if they violate the Federal Rules
of Evidence, including those pertaining to hearsay, conclusions, and foundation.
Argument or case citations, whether from a witness, party, or attorney, contained
in affidavits or affirmations may result in rejection of the affidavit or affirmation
or striking of the offensive portions.
5. All exhibits to declarations, affidavits or affirmations must be separately
tabbed and indexed. Exhibits to declarations, affidavits or affirmations filed on
ECF must be described following this sample format below:
(Attachments: # 1 Rule 56.1 Statement in Support of Plaintiff's Motion for
Summary Judgment, # 2 Memorandum in Support of Plaintiff's Motion for
Summary Judgment, # 3 Declaration, # 4 Exhibit 1-Excerpts of deposition
transcript of John Doe dated 1-1-2024, # 5 Exhibit 2-Expert Report of Jane
Doe, # 6 Exhibit 3-Rebuttal Expert Report, # 7 Exhibit 4-Amended Expert
Report, # 8 Exhibit 5-Email from John Doe dated 1-1-2024.
To submit an audio, video, or other digital media file, follow the Eastern District’s
protocol: https://evidence.nyed.uscourts.gov/
6. Do not annex as exhibits copies of pleadings or other filings that already
appear on the docket.
7. On motions for summary judgment, do not attach complete deposition
transcripts as exhibits to affidavits or affirmations. Attach only pages containing
relevant testimony to which citation is made in the memoranda or affidavits.
However, any excerpted submissions must anticipate and comply with Federal
Rule of Evidence 106. In other words, do not distort the record by leaving out a
portion of the excerpt necessary for completeness.
8. Motions for summary judgment may be denied if the Local Rule 56.1
Statements do not conform with the following requirements in addition to those
set forth in the Local Rule:
(a) Except in pro se cases, the Local Rule 56.1 statement by a party
opposing summary judgment shall quote verbatim the moving party’s
Local Rule 56.1 statement, and shall respond to each allegation in the
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moving party’s statement immediately beneath each allegation. The
opposing statement also may, if necessary, include a separate section of
additional material facts alleged to be in dispute. The party opposing
summary judgment may obtain from the movant in electronic format a
word processing version of the Local Rule 56.1 statement to facilitate
compliance with this paragraph.
(b) Each paragraph in the Local Rule 56.1 statement shall contain an
assertion of a material undisputed fact, not a description of evidence. For
example: “John Smith testified at deposition that he crossed the street” is
not a statement of fact. The statement of fact is “John Smith crossed the
street.” If the statement of fact can only be characterized as “undisputed”
by including its source, then it is probably not undisputed.
(c) Do not point out the absence of evidence to support an opponent’s
position in a Local Rule 56.1 statement. Do it in the memorandum of law.
D. Do not state or summarize the claims, defenses, matters apparent on the docket sheet,
timetable, or history of the litigation in the Local Rule 56.1 statement. Just tell the
story of the events giving rise to the case through the undisputed facts. Memoranda
of law on a motion for summary judgment must cite not only to the Local Rule 56.1
statement, but the evidence cited in the applicable portion of the Local Rule 56.1
statement.
E. Parties may request oral argument by noting “Oral Argument Requested” in their
Notice of Motion or opposing memorandum. Motions shall be returnable on
weekdays at 9:30 a.m., but counsel should not appear in Court on the return date.
F. The Court will determine whether argument will be heard and, if so, will advise
counsel of the argument date. The likelihood of oral argument is increased if the
Court is advised by letter with the filing of the motion or opposition that the attorney
who will argue the motion or opposition has been admitted to the bar five years or
less.
IV. Motions in Criminal Cases
A. Any party appealing a Magistrate Judge’s Order of Release or Order of Detention
shall include a copy of the transcript before the Magistrate Judge with their motion.
B. Parties do not need to file a letter requesting a pre-motion conference before filing a
motion in criminal cases. Oral argument on all criminal motions will be heard on a
date set by the Court. The likelihood of oral argument is increased if the Court is
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advised by letter with the filing of the motion or opposition that the attorney who
will argue the motion has been admitted to the bar five years or less.
V. Pretrial Procedures
A. Pretrial Conferences in Criminal Cases
1. Assistant United States Attorneys are responsible for informing
Chambers by calling the Courtroom Deputy when a new case has been assigned
to Judge Cogan. Upon such notification, an initial pretrial conference will be
scheduled.
2. In a multi-defendant case, all filings must designate the defendant or
defendants, and only the defendant or defendants, as to whom the filing pertains.
3. Violations of Supervised Release: The Court will not accept a guilty plea
on a violation of supervised release without 24 hours’ notice of the intent to plead,
specifying the violations as to which the defendant intends to plead guilty. The
practice of not deciding upon the disposition of a VOSR until immediately before
a scheduled conference is strongly discouraged.
B. Pretrial Procedures in Civil Cases
1. All matters in civil actions, except pro se cases, including pretrial
matters, will be heard by Judge Cogan rather than a Magistrate Judge unless an
Order of Referral or a Stipulation Consenting to Magistrate Judge Jurisdiction has
been entered.
2. The submission of a joint pretrial order will be scheduled by the Court;
the parties are to use the form posted on the Court’s website:
https://www.nyed.uscourts.gov/index.php/district-judge-brian-m-cogan
3. The following must be handed to the Courtroom Deputy at the beginning
of trial in duplicate (so that the Court’s Law Clerk has a copy as well as the
Court):
(a) A complete set of documentary exhibits;
(b) A list of all exhibits; and
(c) A copy of the list of witnesses
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VI. Sentencing in Criminal Cases
A. Applications regarding sentencing adjournments shall be made in writing by
defense counsel at least five business days prior to the date of sentencing. The
Government’s response, if any, shall be made in writing at least two business days
before the date of sentencing.
B. Defendant’s sentencing memorandum, if any, is due two weeks prior to sentencing.
The Government’s response, if any, is due one week prior to sentencing. If the
defendant and the Government agree that the case presents no material factual or
legal disputes, they may modify this schedule and shall advise the Court if they do
so. Sentencing memoranda and any objections to the Presentence Report must be
provided to the Probation Department.
C. After the Government’s time for filing a response has passed, but no less than five
days prior to the scheduled sentencing, either party shall file a letter by ECF
confirming that the sentencing is to proceed as scheduled. In the absence of such
confirmation, the Court may adjourn the sentencing sua sponte for
approximately 30 days. The filing deadlines set forth in subparagraph (1) above
and the requirement for a confirmation letter in this subparagraph shall apply to any
adjourned date.
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