Category Archives: Practice Tips

Goodbye, Federal Rules’ Extra 3 Days Due To E-Mail/Electronic Service

Posted on December 17, 2016 by Steven Callahan

On December 1, 2016, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure were amended (amendments available here). Of most importance to civil federal-court practitioners is that the amendments eliminated the extra 3 days previously added onto a deadline for responding to discovery … Continue reading →

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Lesson From The Fifth Circuit – Don’t Wait To Spring Your Best Evidence On Your Opponent At A Deposition

Posted on December 17, 2016 by Steven Callahan

On December 12, 2016, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a district-court decision sanctioning two attorneys ($1,000 each) for “certifying that their clients’ initial disclosures under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(a)(1) were complete and correct even though the … Continue reading →

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Magistrate Judge Tolliver Issues Order Denying Discovery Extension and Motion to Compel Based on Defendants’ Delay

Posted on December 10, 2015 by Steven Callahan

On December 4, 2015, Magistrate Judge Toliver issued an Order (available here) in the S-Line v. B2B Supply case. Defendants sought an extension of time to complete discovery and also an order compelling plaintiff to respond to discovery. The case … Continue reading →

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Mere Employees of Adverse Parties Must Be Subpoenaed To Sit For Deposition

Posted on December 3, 2015 by Steven Callahan

Magistrate Judge Horan’s decision in Jackson v. Stevens Transp., Inc., 3:14-CV-1416-M, 2015 WL 221087 (N.D. Tex. Jan. 15, 2015), notes the rule that, in general, employees of one’s opponent must be subpoenaed to sit for deposition, absent the opponent’s agreement … Continue reading →

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Generally, No Sur-Replies Are Permitted In The Northern District Of Texas

Posted on December 3, 2015 by Steven Callahan

As Judge Means recently noted in Highmark v. Allcare (decision available here), sur-replies are generally not permitted in the Northern District of Texas: Under the local rules, the movant is generally entitled to have the final word. See N.D. Tex. … Continue reading →

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File Your Motions To Compel Prior To The Close Of Discovery

Posted on September 21, 2015 by Steven Callahan

Judge O’Connor issued an Order (available here) in Williams-Pyro v. Warren Watts Technology denying a motion to compel because it was not filed during the discovery period. Judge O’Connor stated: “Motions to compel are untimely if filed after the deadline … Continue reading →

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Make Sure To File A Reply Brief

Posted on May 27, 2015 by Steven Callahan

I just came across Judge Lindsay’s Order in Martin v. Trend Personnel Services (available here), which provides two pieces of important guidance: 1. File a reply brief: “The court notes that Defendants filed no reply. A reply should always be filed, … Continue reading →

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Improperly Redacted Document Leads to Unsealing Order

Posted on April 28, 2015 by Steven Callahan

I previously wrote about how documents are often improperly redacted (from a technical perspective). In the decision available here, the Court held that, when documents have been filed in an unredacted form (because they were not properly redacted), they are no … Continue reading →

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Magistrate Judge Ramirez Issues Findings, Conclusions and Recommendation On Exceptional Case/Attorney’s Fees Motion

Posted on March 28, 2015 by Steven Callahan

In H-W Technology v. Overstock.com, defendant filed a motion for requesting exception case finding and an award of attorney’s fees. Judge Ramirez recommended the denial of this motion (decision available here). Judge Ramirez’s decision contains a good discussion of the … Continue reading →

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Judge Godbey Issues Order on Errata Sheets

Posted on January 10, 2015 by Steven Callahan

On December 9, 2014, Judge Godbey issued an Order in Minka Lighting v. Craftmade International (available here) addressing a motion to strike the errata sheet for a deposition. The errata sheet at issue contained 32 corrections to the deposition testimony, 22 … Continue reading →

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