IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF UTAH
John Doe
Plaintiff, TRIAL ORDER
v.
Case No.
Jane Doe
Defendant. District Judge Jill N. Parrish
The final pretrial conference in this matter is scheduled for [About Five Weeks before
Trial] in Room 8.200. The court will hear oral argument on all motions in limine during this
conference. Counsel should also be prepared to discuss voir dire, jury instructions, and the
verdict form. Counsel who will try the case must attend. Any attorney not present at this
conference will not be permitted to participate in the trial.
This case is set for a [NUMBER OF DAYS]-day jury trial to begin on [Trial Date] at
8:30 a.m. in Room 8.200. The attorneys are expected to appear in court at 8:00 a.m. on the
first day of trial for a brief pre-trial meeting.
Counsel are instructed as follows:
1. Court-Imposed Deadlines
The deadlines described in this order cannot be modified or waived in any way by a
stipulation of the parties. A party that believes an extension of time is necessary must make an
appropriate motion to the Court and that motion may be joined by the other party.
2. Voir Dire
The court’s standard voir dire template may be found on the Court’s website or may be
obtained by contacting chambers. That template includes an “Initial Juror Questionnaire,”
“Questions from the Bench,” and “Confidential Questionnaire.”
Voir dire will be conducted according to the following procedure. The potential jurors
will be given the juror questionnaires in the jury assembly room. Each potential juror will
respond in writing before voir dire begins. The potential jurors will read their responses to the
“Initial Juror Questionnaire” in open court. The court will then ask counsel to introduce
themselves, their staff, and their witnesses. The court will then read the “Questions from the
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Bench.” The potential jurors will be asked to raise their hands if they answer “yes” to any of
these questions. Next, the potential jurors will be asked if they responded “yes” to any of the
questions on the “Confidential Questionnaire.” Any necessary follow-up to these questions will
occur in the jury room with counsel and a court reporter present.
If the parties have additional questions to be asked in the “Confidential Questionnaire,”
they are to follow the following procedure:
(a) The parties must review the Court’s standard voir dire question template. The
parties must then serve on each other by [About 7 weeks before trial] any proposed
changes or additions to the template. The parties must meet and confer in order to agree
on a single set of voir dire questions to the extent possible.
(b) A party suggesting the use of a questionnaire submitted to the jury in advance of
trial must file notice of that request by [About 7 weeks before trial].
(c) The parties must jointly file a single document containing any proposed changes
or additions to the Court’s standard voir dire questions. That document should identify
each proposed change or additional question and state whether the proposed change is
stipulated to by all parties. Any proposed alteration that is not stipulated to by all parties
should be clearly identified.
(d) Proposed voir dire questions should be drafted in a form that can be answered in
writing with a “yes” or “no.” A “yes” answer should indicate that there may be a need for
additional follow-up questions. For example, “Are you aware of any reason why you
cannot serve impartially on the jury in this case?”
3. Jury Instructions and Verdict Form
The procedure for proposed jury instructions and verdict form is as follows:
(a) The parties must review the Court’s standard jury instructions found on the
Court’s website.
(b) The parties must serve their proposed jury instructions and verdict forms on each
other by [About 7 weeks before trial]. The parties must then confer in order to agree on
a single set of jury instructions, and verdict form to the extent possible. It is not enough
for the parties to merely agree upon the general instructions and then each submit their
own set of substantive instructions. The Court expects the parties to meet, confer, and
agree upon the wording of the substantive instructions and the verdict form for the case.
(c) The parties must jointly file with the Court a single set of the parties’ proposed
jury instructions by [About 6 weeks before trial]. That single document should include
all of the proposed jury instructions for both parties. All instructions should be labeled
and numbered. Any instruction that was agreed upon should be labeled “Joint Instruction
No. #.” Any instruction that was not agreed upon should include, and clearly label, both
parties proposals. Any instruction not agreed upon should include citations to the legal
authority that provides the basis for the instruction. The document should not, however,
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include any objections or legal argument. Rather, all objections to proposed jury
instructions and verdict forms should be filed in conformity with subsection (e). An
example of the proper formatting and content of this document is found on the Court’s
website.
(e) Each party must file its objections, if any, to jury instructions, verdict forms, and
voir dire questions proposed by the other party by 4:00 p.m. on [About 5 weeks before
trial]. Any objections must recite the proposal in its entirety and specifically highlight the
objectionable language contained therein. Objections must contain both a concise
argument why the proposed language is improper and citation to relevant legal authority.
Where applicable, the objecting party must submit an alternative instruction covering the
pertinent subject matter or principle of law. A copy of the proposed alternative instruction
must be filed with the Court and emailed to
[email protected] as a Word
or WordPerfect document. Any party may, if it chooses, submit a brief written response
in support of its proposed instructions by 4:00 p.m. on [2 days after objections].
(f) All instructions must be short, concise, understandable (i.e. written in plain
English), and neutral statements of law. Argumentative instructions and voir dire
questions are improper and will not be given.
(g) Modified versions of statutory or other form jury instructions (e.g., Federal Jury
Practice and Instructions) may be acceptable. A modified jury instruction must, however,
identify the exact nature of the modification made to the form instruction and cite the
Court to authority, if any, supporting such a modification.
4. Motions in Limine
Before filing any Daubert motion or any motion in limine, the parties must meet and
confer to attempt to resolve the dispute. All Daubert motions and motions in limine are to be
filed with the Court by [About 6 weeks before trial]. A separate motion must be filed for each
preliminary ruling sought. Each motion must specifically identify the relief sought, include a
certification that counsel met and conferred, and must be accompanied by a memorandum of law
and a proposed order. If the motion concerns a proposed exhibit, the entire exhibit should also be
attached. Opposition memoranda must be filed by [About 5 weeks before trial]. There will be
no reply. No memorandum in support of, or in opposition to, a motion may be longer than ten
(10) pages in length.
5. Courtroom Equipment and Recorded Testimony
If counsel wish to use any courtroom equipment, such as easels, projection screens, etc.,
they must so state in the final pretrial order and at the final pretrial conference. Trial counsel and
support staff are expected to familiarize themselves in advance of trial with any equipment they
intend to use.
Any party desiring to present testimony of a witness by recorded means, whether video,
audio or paper, must serve a designation of the testimony by [About 7 weeks before trial]. This
shall not be filed with the Court.
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The designation must include specific citations to the testimony intended to be
introduced. The opposing party must serve its objections on the party intending to offer the
recorded testimony by [About 6 weeks before trial]. The parties must then meet and confer
(with at least one in-person meeting) to resolve any disputes. After that conference, the
designating party shall file its designation, as well as the entire recorded testimony (not just the
portions designated) with the court by [About 5 weeks before trial]. Any remaining objections
to that designation must be filed with the court by [Three days later].
A party intending to use recorded testimony is strongly encouraged to present the
deposition by video or to display the deposition text as the deposition is presented and, if read, to
use a professional reader who has rehearsed the reading with the attorney.
6. Trial Briefs
Each party must file a Trial Brief [About 1 week before pretrial conference]. Each
brief must include a list of all witnesses to be called and a short statement as to the substance of
each witness’s testimony. The plaintiff’s trial brief must contain an outline of the elements of
each cause of action, with the facts supporting that element listed under each element. The
defendant’s trial brief must contain a similar outline of the elements and facts for each cause of
action in any counterclaim or third party claim. Any party raising an affirmative defense must
outline the elements of such defense and the facts supporting that element.
7. Exhibit Lists/Marking Exhibits
(a) Counsel for all parties must exchange with all opposing parties copies of each
exhibit to be used at trial. The plaintiff must provide opposing counsel such exhibits by
[About 7 weeks before trial]. The defendant must provide opposing counsel such
exhibits no later than [About 6 weeks before trial]. Counsel must clearly mark any
exhibits that will be used during opening statements.
(b) Parties must meet and confer in order to stipulate to non-objectionable exhibits. In
order to save the jury’s time, all stipulated exhibits will be admitted into evidence during
the pre-trial meeting immediately prior to voir dire.
(c) After eliminating duplicate exhibits, each party must prepare an exhibit list in
Word or WordPerfect format for the Court’s use at trial. Standard forms for exhibit lists
are available from the Court’s website, and questions regarding the preparation of these
lists may be directed to the case manager, Stephanie Schaerrer, at 801-524-6018.
(d) All parties are required to pre-mark their exhibits to avoid taking up time during
trial for such purposes.
(e) All exhibits to be used at trial must, at the time they are exchanged with opposing
counsel, be marked for identification numerically preceded by a designation of the party
offering the exhibit, such as “Plaintiff’s Exhibit ___” or “Defendant’s Exhibit ___.”
Counsel are to designate a range of numbers to be used by each side to avoid the same
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number being used for more than one exhibit. For example, if the plaintiff elected to use
the numeric range of 1 to 100, the defendant would begin at the numeric range of 200.
Alphabetic identification is not permitted.
(f) Pages of documentary exhibits must retain bates stamps used when the documents
were produced in discovery.
(g) Original exhibits must be stapled.
(h) Two (2) trial notebooks containing paper copies of exhibit lists and marked
exhibits must be submitted to the Court by [About 5 days before trial]. The exhibit list
must be filed with the Court and emailed as a Word or WordPerfect document to
[email protected]. The notebooks should also include a list of all exhibits
to be admitted via stipulation of the parties.
(i) Electronic copies of all exhibits must also be submitted on a CD/DVD Rom in
PDF format. Optical Character Recognition (OCR) must be run on the PDF files to
enable text searching of the exhibits.
8. Witness Lists
All parties are required to prepare a separate witness list for the Court’s use at trial. The
list contained in the pretrial order will not be sufficient. Standard forms for witness lists are
available from the Court’s website, and questions regarding the preparation of these lists may be
directed to the case manager, Stephanie Schaerrer, at 801-524-6018. Witness lists must be filed
with the Court and emailed as a Word or WordPerfect document to
[email protected] by [About 5 days before trial].
9. Pretrial Objections
The requirement for objections to exhibits under Rule 26(a)(3)(B) of the Federal
Rules of Civil Procedure is superseded by this order. Any objection to the authenticity of
an exhibit as defined by Rule 901 of the Federal Rules of Evidence, and any objections of
any nature to exhibits that will be used by counsel during opening arguments, must be
made in writing, and filed with the court, no later than [About 5 weeks before trial].
Any party intending to offer evidence under Federal Rule of Evidence 902(11) or
(12) must provide to opposing counsel and file with the Court a notice of their intent by
[About 4 weeks before trial]. Any objections must be made in writing no later than [3
Days Later].
The Court will address these challenges at the final pretrial conference. All other
objections to an exhibit’s admissibility are reserved until the exhibit is offered at trial.
10. Presentation of Exhibits at Trial
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A hard copy of every exhibit offered in evidence shall be presented to the Court and to
the witness at the time the exhibit is first used. The Court will maintain a copy for later use by
the Court or by a subsequent witness.
11. In Case of Settlement
Pursuant to DUCivR 41-1, the Court will tax all jury costs incurred as a result of the
parties’ failure to give the Court notice of settlement less than one full business day before the
commencement of trial. Leaving a voice mail message or sending notice by fax or email is not
considered sufficient notice to the Court. If the case settles, counsel must advise the jury
administrator and a member of this chamber’s staff through a personal visit or person-to-person
telephonic communication at least one full business day before the commencement of trial.
12. Courtroom Conduct
In addition to the rules outlined in DUCivR 43-1, the Court has established the following
ground rules for the conduct of counsel at trial:
(a) Please be on time for each court session. In most cases, trial will be conducted
from 8:30 a.m. until approximately 3:00 p.m., with two short (ten minute) breaks and a
30 minute lunch break. Trial engagements take precedence over any other business. If
you have matters in other courtrooms, arrange in advance to have them continued or have
an associate handle them for you. Any motions or matters that need to be addressed
outside the jury will be heard at 8:00 a.m. or after the trial day has recessed. Usually, the
Court has other hearings set after 3:00 p.m.
(b) Stand as court is opened, recessed or adjourned.
(c) Stand when the jury enters or retires from the courtroom.
(d) Stand when addressing, or being addressed by, the Court.
(e) In making objections and responding to objections to evidence, counsel must state
the legal grounds for their objections with reference to the specific rule of evidence upon
which they rely. For example, “Objection . . . irrelevant and inadmissible under Rule
402,” or “Objection . . . hearsay and inadmissible under Rule 802.”
(f) Sidebar conferences are discouraged. Most matters requiring argument must be
raised during recess. Please plan accordingly.
(g) Counsel need not ask permission to approach a witness in order to briefly hand
the witness a document or exhibit.
(h) Address all remarks to the Court, not to opposing counsel, and do not make
disparaging or acrimonious remarks toward opposing counsel or witnesses. Counsel must
instruct all persons at counsel table that gestures, facial expressions, audible comments,
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or any other manifestations of approval or disapproval during the testimony of witnesses,
or at any other time, are absolutely prohibited.
(i) Refer to all persons, including witnesses, other counsel, and parties, by their
surnames and NOT by their first or given names.
(j) Only one attorney for each party shall examine, or cross-examine, each witness.
The attorney stating objections during direct examination shall be the attorney recognized
for cross examination.
(k) Offers of, or requests for, a stipulation must be made out of the hearing of the
jury.
(l) When not taking testimony, counsel will remain seated at counsel table
throughout the trial unless it is necessary to move to see a witness. Absent an emergency,
do not leave the courtroom while court is in session. If you must leave the courtroom, you
do not need to ask the Court’s permission. Do not confer with or visit with anyone in the
spectator section while court is in session. Messages may be delivered to counsel table
provided they are delivered with no distraction or disruption in the proceedings.
(m) Closing argument will follow the Court’s final instructions to the jury. Counsel
are cautioned that any closing rebuttal argument must be limited to addressing new issues
raised during the defendant’s closing argument. The Court will sustain an objection and
instruct the jury to disregard rebuttal argument that could and should have been made in
the plaintiff’s initial closing argument. The plaintiff’s closing argument must be
structured to allow the defendant a fair opportunity to address the argument in its closing.
(n) Counsel are reminded that vouching is improper. In opening statements and in
arguments to the jury, counsel shall not express personal knowledge or opinion
concerning any matter in issue. The following examples would be improper: “I believe
the witness was telling the truth,” or “I found the testimony credible.”
DATED this ____ day of ____________, _________.
BY THE COURT:
__________________________
Jill N. Parrish
United States District Judge
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