(a) Presence of Counsel.
(1) Duty of Counsel. Unless excused by the Court, unrepresented parties or
counsel with authority to bind parties shall be present and punctual at all
portions and phases of hearings and trials, including in jury cases, the time
during which the jury is considering its verdict. Counsel and unrepresented
parties shall inform their witnesses of the need for punctuality.
(2) Presumed Present. Unless the contrary affirmatively appears of record, it will
be presumed that the parties and their counsel are present at all stages of the
trial, or if absent, that their absence was voluntary and constituted a waiver of
their presence.
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(b) Conduct of Counsel.
(1) During Court proceedings, all attorneys shall stand when speaking. All
objections and comments thereon shall be addressed to the Court. Objections
shall be made with specific reference to the Federal Rules of Evidence or other
authority on which the objection is based without argument. Any request to
have the reporter read back testimony should be addressed to the Court. There
shall be no oral confrontation between opposing counsel.
Courtroom Attire. All attorneys appearing in this Court shall be appropriately
attired – coat and tie for men, comparable attire for women – and shall not be
groomed or attired in a manner calculated to distract attention from the
proceedings, call attention to themselves, or show disrespect to the Court.
(c) Presence of Parties. All parties shall be present at any trial unless prior approval of
the absence of a party is obtained from the Court.
(d) Examination of Witnesses.
(1) Only one attorney representing each party in the litigation shall examine, cross-
examine or object during the examination of an individual witness.
(2) No person shall, by facial expression or other physical gesture, exhibit any
opinion concerning any testimony that is being given by a witness.
(e) Exhibits.
(1) When practical, all documentary exhibits shall be prepared in sufficient
quantities so that a copy may be furnished to the witness, the Court, opposing
counsel and the examining attorney. The admissibility of trial exhibits should be
stipulated whenever possible.
(2) After the final determination of an action, counsel or parties shall have 30 days
within which to withdraw exhibits and depositions. In the event the exhibits
and depositions are not withdrawn, the Clerk shall, after notice to the parties,
destroy or otherwise dispose of them.
(f) Courtroom Technology. In the joint pretrial order the parties shall disclose the
technology they intend to use in the Courtroom during the trial to present their case.
This disclosure shall list:
(1) equipment they intend to bring into the Courtroom to use; and,
(2) equipment supplied by the Court that the parties intend to use.
Further, the parties shall also confirm the compatibility/viability of their planned use of
technology with the Court’s equipment.
(g) Requests for Jury Instructions. All requests for jury instruction shall be filed in
accordance with the deadlines established in the scheduling order or by the Court. The
requests must contain citations of supporting authorities. Supplemental and additional
instructions may be submitted to the Court prior to final argument by counsel.
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(h) All attendees shall be appropriately attired and shall not be groomed or attired in such
a manner reasonably likely to distract attention from the proceedings, call attention to
themselves, or show disrespect to the Court. Shorts, flip-flops/shower shoes, and
transparent/revealing clothes are non-exclusive examples of inappropriate attire. Hats
and other head coverings, other than those religiously affiliated, must be removed
inside of the courtroom unless previously approved by the presiding Judge.
Any Deputy United States Marshal and/or Courtroom Security Officer may notify a
judicial officer of any violation for appropriate action or sanction. This rule is
enforceable by any presiding judge. Violations of this policy, or any other court
policy, may result in exclusion from the courtroom.
Nothing in this rule impacts LR 43.1(b)(1) which addresses Courtroom Attire for
Counsel.
The Clerk of Court shall post this rule outside of each courtroom, as well as on the
Court’s website.
