UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
S O U T H E R N D I S T R I C T OF N E W Y O R K
LAURA TAYLOR SWAIN TAMMI HELLWIG
Chief Judge Clerk of Court
COURT NOTICE TO THE BAR CONTACT:
July 16, 2025 Mediation Office (212) 805-0643
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK ADR PROGRAM ANNOUNCES PERSONAL
INJURY PILOT PROGRAM EFFECTIVE JULY 14, 2025
The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York announces a pilot program for
personal injury mediation effective July 14, 2025. This program is designed to promote the just,
speedy, and inexpensive resolution of civil cases by providing litigants with automatic and expeditious
disclosure of critical documents and requiring them to participate in mediation unless ordered
otherwise. Cases with claims for premises liability, motor vehicle, FTCA, and FELA assigned to
District Judges Abrams, Clarke, Furman, Halpern, Koeltl, Rochon, Schofield, and Subramanian will,
once the defendant answers, be ordered directly to mediation with pre-mediation instructions and
disclosures.
The pilot order can be found here. The Mediation Program Procedures and information about other
mediation protocols are available at https://nysd.uscourts.gov/programs/mediation-adr. Questions or
comments about the protocol can be directed to the Court’s ADR Program at 212-805-0643 or
[email protected].
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THE HON. CHARLES L. BRIEANT JR. THE DANIEL PATRICK MOYNIHAN THE THURGOOD MARSHALL
FEDERAL BUILDING AND COURTHOUSE UNITED STATES COURTHOUSE UNITED STATES COURTHOUSE
300 QUARROPAS STREET 500 PEARL STREET, ROOM 820 40 FOLEY SQUARE
WHITE PLAINS, NY 10601-4150 NEW YORK, NY 10007-1312 NEW YORK, NY 10007
(212) 805-0500
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
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IN RE: PERSONAL INJURY PILOT PROGRAM : Mediation Referral Order
: For Personal Injury Cases
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, District/Magistrate Judge:
As part of a pilot program for cases involving certain personal injury claims, the Clerk of the
Court is directed to enter this Order in all newly filed counseled motor vehicle, premises
liability, Federal Employers Liability Act, or Federal Tort Claims Act cases on my docket.
Since personal injury cases often benefit from early mediation, it is hereby
ORDERED that the Court is referring this case to mediation under Local Civil Rule
83.9 an d t hat med ia tion shall be scheduled within ninety days.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that, if requested by a defendant, a plaintiff asserting
bodily injury shall submit to an Independent Medical Examination (IME) in advance of the
mediation. The defendant requesting the IME shall schedule it to take place within 45 days of
the date of this Order.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that to facilitate mediation the parties shall, within 60
days of this Order, produce the information specified in the following discovery protocols.
The protocols require the early exchange of targeted, core discovery, and are intended to
frame issues for resolution through mediation and to assist the parties in planning for
additional discovery in the event the case is not promptly resolved through mediation. If any
party believes that there is good cause why a particular case should be exempted from the
discovery protocols, in whole or in part, or that mediation should be adjourned until a later
date, that party must raise the issue promptly with the Court.
The discovery protocols do not modify any party’s rights under the Federal Rules of
Civil Procedure or the Local Civil Rules, but they do supersede the parties’ obligations under
Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(1) during the pendency of mediation. All documents and information
produced under the Discovery Protocols will be deemed part of discovery under the Federal
Rules of Civil Procedure. The parties’ responses to the discovery protocols are subject to
Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(e) regarding supplementation, Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(g) regarding certification
of responses, and Fed. R. Civ. P. 34(b)(2)(E) regarding the form of production for documents
and electronically stored information.
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1. All parties shall produce the following, if applicable:
a. Incident or accident reports concerning the incident or accident;
b. Any insurance agreement under which an insurance business may be liable to satisfy all
or part of a possible judgment in the action or to indemnify or reimburse for payments
made to satisfy the judgment;
c. All photographs and videos (including surveillance and security videos) depicting the
incident or accident including: damage to vehicle(s), injuries sustained by parties, or the
incident or accident scene, and/or any other photographs or videos which relate to this
case;
d. The names and contact information for each person who witnessed the incident or
accident;
e. All statements or communications of any witnesses to the incident or accident;
f. For motor vehicle cases, any invoices, bills, or repair estimates relating to the repair of
the vehicle(s) involved in the accident; and
g. For cases alleging damage to property, other than to motor vehicles, estimates of the
damage and costs of repair to the property.
2. Plaintiff(s) shall produce to the Defendant(s) the following Documents, if
applicable:
a. If the Plaintiff is claiming lost income, Plaintiff shall produce any documents supporting
that claim including: any income tax returns or documents which refer to Plaintiff's
employment, W2 forms, the records of the dates of absences from work, the records
relating to the facts and duration of any unemployment, the records of workers’
compensation claims, the records of unemployment insurance claims, and applications
for assistance from any governmental agency because of unemployment or ill health;
b. All medical reports and records in Plaintiff’s possession relating to the injuries at issue in
this matter, as well as any bills, reports, notes, and records prepared by any physician,
hospital, or healthcare provider who has examined, evaluated, and/or treated plaintiff for
injuries sustained as a result of the incident/accident;
c. Authorizations for release of all medical records relating to the injuries sustained by the
Plaintiff as a result of the incident/accident;
d. Documentation concerning any Medicare liens; and
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e. For motor vehicle cases, documents concerning the repair history of the vehicle
involved in the accident.
3. Defendant(s) must produce to the Plaintiff(s) the following Documents, if
applicable:
a. Any IME report as well as any and all bills, reports, notes, and records prepared by any
Independent Medical Examiner or healthcare provider who has examined or evaluated
Plaintiff;
b. Any documents which reflect any inspection made of the area where the incident or
accident occurred on or after the date of the incident or accident and for a period of
twelve months prior thereto;
c. Any documents which reflect any complaints or violations issued for the subject location
on or after the date of the incident and in the twelve months prior thereto;
d. Any documents describing any repairs, replacements, or alterations to the subject
location;
e. Policy and procedure manuals, posted notices, and any other documents connected to
routine repairs, cleaning, maintenance, and upkeep of the premises;
f. Notices and any other documents connected to non-routine repairs, cleaning,
maintenance, and upkeep of the area where the incident occurred, up to and including
the date of the subject incident or accident;
g. Documents demonstrating ownership and control of the subject premises; and
h. For motor vehicle cases, documents concerning the repair history of the vehicle
involved in the accident.
If the mediation is unsuccessful, the parties shall promptly request that an initial pre-trial
conference be scheduled, if one has not already been scheduled or held. The parties may
consent to proceed for all purposes before the assigned Magistrate Judge (the appropriate
form for which is available at http://nysd.uscourts.gov/file/forms/consent-to-proceed-before-us-
magistrate-judge).
SO ORDERED:
Dated: New York, New York
, 20__
_____________________________
United States District/Magistrate Judge
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