Western District of Texas Adjournment & Extension Requirements

Trial dates will be continued only in extreme situations, and parties must contact the Court’s law clerk to seek a continuance.

Source text: After the trial date is set, the Court will not move the trial date except in extreme situations. If a party believes that the circumstances warrant continuing the trial date, the parties are directed to contact the Court’s law clerk.

If parties settle, they must promptly notify the Court and request a stay of deadlines.

Source text: Parties shall promptly notify the Court if they reach a settlement in a case and request to stay any deadlines.

After the transfer-motion deadline passes, a late filer must seek leave of court and show good cause.

Source text: Deadline to file a motion to transfer. After this deadline, movants must seek leave of Court and show good cause for the delay.

Response to discovery dispute summary due in 3 business days

Source text: The responding party has 3 business days thereafter to provide an email response, also not to exceed 500 words for one issue or a combined 1,000 words for multiple issues.

Motion to transfer must be filed within 3 weeks of CMC or 8 weeks of service, whichever is later.

Source text: A motion to transfer anywhere shall be filed within 3 weeks after the CMC or within 8 weeks of receiving or waiving service of the complaint, whichever is later. Thereafter, a movant must show good cause for any delay and seek leave of court.

Plaintiff response due 2 weeks after venue discovery completion; defendant reply due 2 weeks after response.

Source text: The deadline for plaintiff's response is 2 weeks after the completion of venue or jurisdictional discovery. The deadline for Defendant's reply is 2 weeks after the filing of the response.

Court automatically grants unopposed or agreed extension requests meeting specified conditions, which must be filed as a notice or stipulation rather than a motion.

Source text: In all cases pending before the undersigned, henceforth, the Court automatically grants any request to extend a deadline or to amend a scheduling order, provided that (1) such request is unopposed or agreed to between the parties, (2) such request does not change the date of any hearing, trial, or other Court date, (3) such request does not extend any deadline of a final submission that affects the Court’s ability to hold a scheduled hearing, trial, or Court event, and (4) such request does not extend the deadline to answer or otherwise respond to a complaint more than 45 days from the original answer date. Extensions for final submission deadlines at least one month before a scheduled hearing, trial, or Court event will not affect the Court. The parties are ORDERED to file any such request as a notice or stipulation to the Court, instead of a motion.

Trial date continuances only permitted in extreme situations; parties must contact the Court’s law clerk to request.

Source text: After the trial date is set, the Court will not move the trial date except in extreme situations. If a party believes that the circumstances warrant continuing the trial date, the parties are directed to contact the Court’s law clerk.

Extensions of response to Complaint up to 45 days allowed if parties agree; extensions beyond 45 days require a motion.

Source text: The Court is generally willing to extend the response to the Complaint up to 45 days if agreed by the parties. Extensions beyond 45 days from the original answer date are disfavored and require a motion.

Motion for transfer must be filed within 8 weeks of service/waiving service or 3 weeks after CMC (whichever later); extensions require leave and good cause.

Source text: 8 weeks after receiving or waiving service of complaint, or 3 weeks after the CMC, whichever is later. Deadline to file a motion for transfer. After this deadline, movants must seek leave of Court and show good cause for the delay.

Continuance requests must be in writing and made after conferring with opposing counsel.

Source text: You must make any request for a continuance in writing as early as possible, and you must confer with opposing counsel prior to filing the motion.

Continuance requests must be in writing, made early, and after conferring with opposing counsel.

Source text: You must make any request for a continuance in writing as early as possible, and you must confer with opposing counsel prior to filing the motion.

Requests to modify trial dates must be made in writing.

Source text: Any request that a trial date be modified must be made in writing.

Trial date modification requests must be in writing with opposing counsel conference required.

Source text: Any request that a trial date be modified must be made in writing. The party seeking the continuance must confer with the opposing side. If there is an agreement, the Court usually approves a continuance. If there is no agreement, the Court holds a hearing.

Motion and proposed order required for trial continuances; file as soon as possible.

Source text: Motion and proposed order required. File motion as soon as possible. If motion is unopposed, the court will rule immediately; otherwise, the court may wait for the opposing party to respond.

Motion and proposed order required for continuing criminal trials; file as soon as possible; unopposed motions ruled immediately.

Source text: Motion and proposed order required. File motion as soon as possible. If motion is unopposed, the court will rule immediately otherwise the court may wait for other side to respond.

Extensions to answer complaint require agreed motion; discovery extensions can be stipulated.

Source text: Extensions to answer a complaint require an agreed motion and proposed order. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 6. Otherwise, discovery extensions may be stipulated to between the parties without any need for court approval.

Trial date modification requests must be in writing before discovery deadline.

Source text: Any request that a trial date be modified must be made in writing to the judge before the deadline for completion of discovery.

Trial date modification requests must be in writing with opposing counsel conference.

Source text: Any request that a trial date be modified must be made in writing. The opposing side must be conferred with regarding the continuance of a trial. If there is an agreement, the Court normally approves a continuance. If there is no agreement, a response indicating the grounds for opposition should be filed.

Case dismissal for want of prosecution after 90 days without service.

Source text: Failure to serve a defendant within 90 days will trigger a notice to show cause why the case or defendant should not be dismissed.

Stipulated extensions allowed for criminal cases without affecting other pretrial dates.

Source text: Yes.

Dispositive motions ruled on as far in advance as possible; trial continued if not addressed.

Source text: As far in advance as possible, but if the court cannot address the motion, it will usually continue the trial setting.

Trial continuance requests must be in writing with opposing counsel conference; hearing if no agreement.

Source text: Any request that a trial date be modified must be made in writing. The opposing side must be conferred with regarding the continuance of a trial. If there is an agreement, the Court normally approves a continuance. If there is no agreement, a hearing is held.

Extensions or continuances must be requested as soon as need is known, supported by good cause.

Source text: 4. Counsel input regarding the discovery period, extensions, trial date, etc. Counsel participate in preparing the case schedule. Once a scheduling order has been entered, counsel are expected to comply with the deadlines or seek timely relief therefrom supported by good cause. Any extension of any deadline and any continuance should be requested as soon as the need for that relief is known.

Motion for continuance must be filed promptly with specific required elements.

Source text: A motion for continuance in a civil trial should be filed as soon as possible. In the motion, please include whether the continuance is unopposed or opposed, the reason(s) for the requested continuance, and the length of additional time requested.

Motions to continue must be filed as early as possible with good cause shown.

Source text: A motion to continue should be filed at the earliest date possible and should show good cause for the continuance. The court will rule as soon as practicable.

Stipulated extensions are not permitted.

Source text: No.

Continuance motions must be filed before pretrial deadlines; late motions may require hearing.

Source text: If a continuance of trial is needed the motion must be filed prior to the pretrial submissions deadlines set in the Court’s scheduling order. With the exception of an emergency, late motions will not be tolerated and may result in a motion hearing in order for counsel to show good cause as to the late request.

Must comply with court-set deadlines.

Source text: Not abiding by deadlines set out by the Court.

Motion for continuance must be filed before pretrial submission deadlines; late motions require showing good cause except in emergencies.

Source text: If a continuance of trial is needed the motion must be filed prior to the pretrial submissions deadlines set in the Court's scheduling order. With the exception of an emergency, late motions will not be tolerated and may result in a motion hearing in order for counsel to show good cause as to the late request.

No trial continuance if dispositive motion pending.

Source text: No.

Extensions of time that do not affect other pretrial dates may be granted by stipulation filed with the court without a motion and order.

Source text: 34. Does the court allow the parties in civil cases to agree to extensions of time by stipulation filed with the court, rather than by motion and order, where the extension will not affect other pretrial dates? E.g., an extension to answer the complaint or to respond to written discovery. Yes.

Parties must notify the court as soon as they become aware of the need to continue a civil trial date; no set procedure governs continuance requests.

Source text: 40. What is the court’s general procedure for continuing civil trials? How early does the court want the request made and how early will the court rule on such a request? No set procedure. Parties should notify the Court as soon as they are aware of a need to continue the trial date.

In criminal cases, parties may stipulate to extensions of time that do not affect other pretrial dates, filing the stipulation with the court instead of a motion and order.

Source text: Yes.

No set procedure for continuing criminal trials; parties must notify the court as soon as they become aware of the need to continue.

Source text: No set procedure. Parties should notify the Court as soon as they are aware of a need to continue the trial date.

Complaint response extensions up to 45 days are generally allowed by party agreement, while extensions beyond 45 days are disfavored and require a motion.

Source text: The Court is generally willing to extend the response to the Complaint up to 45 days if agreed by the parties. Extensions beyond 45 days from the original answer date are disfavored and require a motion.

Markman hearing postponed if transfer motion remains pending.

Source text: If a motion to transfer remains pending, the Court will either promptly resolve the pending motion before the Markman hearing, or postpone the Markman hearing.

Complaint answer extensions require agreed motion; discovery extensions can be stipulated.

Source text: Extensions to answer a complaint require an agreed motion and proposed order. See Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 6. Otherwise, discovery extensions may be stipulated to between the parties without any need for court approval.

Failure to serve within 120 days triggers dismissal notice.

Source text: Failure to serve a defendant within 120 days will trigger a notice to show cause why the case or defendant should not be dismissed.

Deadline modifications require good cause showing.

Source text: Further, the parties may request a modification of the Court’s exemplary deadlines set forth in Appendix A, which the Court may grant only upon a showing of good cause. The good cause standard requires a particularized showing that the exemplary deadlines set forth in Appendix A cannot reasonably be met despite the diligence of the party seeking the extension.

Extension of one deadline does not extend subsequent deadlines.

Source text: Unless specifically ordered by the Court, an extension of time to comply with any one of the time limits in the Scheduling Order does not extend the time to comply with subsequent time limits.

No stipulation for extensions without motion and order.

Source text: No.

Contact Courtroom Deputy for trial continuance if dispositive motion pending.

Source text: Depends on circumstances; contact Natasha Martinez, Courtroom Deputy, if this occurs. Our goal is to get the dispositive motions ruled on prior to the deadline for filing pretrial materials.

Court may grant trial continuance if unable to rule on dispositive motion before trial preparation; contact Courtroom Deputy.

Source text: Depends on circumstances; contact Natasha Martinez, Courtroom Deputy, if this occurs. Our goal is to get the dispositive motions ruled on prior to trial.

Extensions of time should be by agreed motion, not stipulation, even if they don't affect other dates.

Source text: Does the Court permit the parties in civil cases to agree to extensions of time by stipulation filed with the Court, rather than by motion and order, where the extension will not affect other pretrial dates? e.g., an extension to answer the complaint or to respond to written discovery. It’s best for the parties in civil cases to agree to extensions of time by filing an agreed motion, even if the extension doesn’t affect other pretrial dates.

Motions to continue must be filed as early as possible and demonstrate good cause.

Source text: A motion to continue should be filed at the earliest date possible and should show good cause for the continuance.

Agreed modifications are generally approved early in a case; multiple requests require a hearing to show good cause, and non-agreed continuances require immediate response.

Source text: The Court will approve, in most instances, an agreed modification at the beginning of a case. However, if the court receives multiple requests a hearing will be set in order for counsel to show good cause why additional continuances are needed. If a continuance is not agreed to, the opposing party should file a response to any motion immediately.

Motion to continue trial should be filed as far in advance as possible when dispositive motion cannot be ruled on before trial.

Source text: As far in advance as possible. A hearing on the motion will be set prior to the trial setting and if the motion cannot be addressed prior to trial the court will usually continue the trial setting.

Notify court immediately if trial continuation needed.

Source text: No set procedure. Parties should notify the Court as soon as they are aware of a need to continue the trial date.

For disputes about extensions of time and similar procedural issues, the Court prefers use of this discovery-dispute procedure.

Source text: The procedure outlined below is also the Court’s preferred mechanism for handling disputes regarding procedural matters such as extensions of time, excess pages, narrowing claims and prior art, amending invalidity and infringement contentions, etc.

Extensions to answer complaint require agreed motion; discovery extensions can be stipulated.

Source text: Extensions to answer a complaint require an agreed motion and proposed order. See Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 6. Otherwise, discovery extensions may be stipulated to between the parties without any need for court approval.

Extensions to answer complaint or respond to discovery can be granted without motion if not affecting other dates.

Source text: Yes.

Dispositive motions ruled on as soon as possible.

Source text: The court rules on dispositive motions as soon as possible.

Discovery extensions can be stipulated without court approval, but complaint extensions require agreed motion and order.

Source text: Does the court permit the parties in civil cases to agree to extensions of time by stipulation filed with the court, rather than by motion and order, where the extension will not affect other pretrial dates? E.g., an extension to answer the complaint or to respond to written discovery. Extensions to answer a complaint requires an agreed motion and proposed order. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 6. Discovery extensions may be stipulated to between the parties without any need for court approval, but there will be no intervention by the Court except in extraordinary circumstances, and no trial setting will be vacated because of

Trial continuances granted as far in advance as possible; hearing set before trial.

Source text: As far in advance as possible. A hearing on the motion will be set prior to the trial setting and if the motion cannot be addressed prior to trial the court will usually continue the trial setting.

Stipulated extensions allowed for non-dispositive matters.

Source text: Yes.