(a) Consent of the Parties.
Upon consent of the parties, magistrate judges are specially designated by the
district judges to exercise civil jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c)(1), and
to conduct any or all proceedings in a jury or nonjury civil matter and order the
entry of judgment in the case.
(b) Notice of Consent Option.
The Order and Notice entered by a judicial officer under LR Civ P 16.1(a) shall
inform the parties of their right to consent to proceed before a magistrate judge.
Parties added to an action after reference to a magistrate judge shall be notified by
the clerk of their right to consent to the exercise of jurisdiction by a magistrate
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judge. In the event an added party does not consent to the magistrate judge=s
jurisdiction, the action shall be returned to the district judge for further proceedings.
Additional notices may be furnished by the clerk to the parties at later stages of the
proceeding, and may be included with pretrial notices and instructions. The consent
form may be filed at any time prior to trial; however, no civil action shall be referred
to a magistrate judge unless a district judge has signed an order of reference.
(c) Execution of Consent.
Any party may deliver a consent form to the clerk. An alternative and acceptable
consent form is a FR Civ P 26(f) Parties= Report of Planning Meeting, signed by all
parties or their counsel, which states that all parties consent to the exercise of
jurisdiction by a magistrate judge. No consent form shall be made available, nor
will its contents be made known to any district judge or magistrate judge, unless all
parties have consented to the reference to the magistrate judge. No magistrate
judge, district judge or other court official may attempt to persuade or induce any
party to consent to the reference of any matter to a magistrate judge. This rule,
however, shall not preclude a district judge or magistrate judge from informing the
parties that they may have the option of referring the case, or one or more case-
dispositive motions, to a magistrate judge.
(d) Vacating a Reference.
A district judge may, on his or her own motion, or under extraordinary
circumstances shown by any party, vacate the reference to a magistrate judge of a
case in which the parties have filed consents.
