Western District of Washington Document Filing Requirements

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Motion

Local counsel must review and sign all motions and other filings, ensure compliance with local rules, and remind pro hac vice counsel of professionalism standards.

Unless waived by the court in addition to those responsibilities and any assigned by the court, local counsel must review and sign all motions and other filings, ensure that all filings comply with all local rules of this court, and remind pro hac vice counsel of the court's commitment to maintaining a high degree of professionalism and civility from the lawyers practicing before this court as set forth in the Introduction to the Criminal Rules.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Deposition designations

An objection not designated in the prescribed manner is waived even if it was stated at the deposition.

A failure to designate an objection in this manner shall constitute a waiver, even if the objection was previously stated at the deposition.

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Petition for admission

Petition for admission must include certificates of two bar members attesting to good moral character.

The petition must include the certificates of two reputable members of the bar of this court attesting to the petitioner's good moral character.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Pleadings motions and other filings

When the court reviews agency proceedings, parties should, insofar as possible, cite the page and line of each referenced transcript or record portion.

In all cases where the court is to review the proceedings of an administrative agency, transcripts, deposition testimony, etc., the parties shall, insofar as possible, cite the page and line of any part of the transcript or record to which their pleadings, motions or other filings refer.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Trial procedure

Must include

witness availability rule

Witnesses called at peril of calling party; trial not recessed for unavailable witnesses except in extraordinary circumstances.

Once the trial begins, witnesses will be put on call at the peril of the calling party. The trial will not be recessed because a witness is unavailable except in extraordinary circumstances.

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Motion

Motions must include a noting date in the caption in the format 'NOTE ON MOTION CALENDAR: [date]'.

The motion shall include in its caption (immediately below the title of the motion) a designation of the noting date. The form shall be as follows: NOTE ON MOTION CALENDAR: [insert date noted for consideration.]

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Joint status report

Joint Status Report must address changes to disclosures, discovery subjects and phasing, and discovery limitations.

When the parties confer with each other pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(f) and CR 16(a), in addition to the matters covered by Fed. R. Civ. P. 26, the parties shall discuss and address in the Joint Status Report the following topics: (1) Whether changes should be made in the timing, form, or requirement for disclosures under Rule 26(a), including a statement as to when disclosures under Rule 26(a)(1) were made or will be made; (2) The subjects on which discovery may be needed, when discovery should be completed, and whether discovery should be conducted in phases or be limited to or focused upon particular issues; (3) Whether changes should be made in the limitations on discovery imposed under these rules or by local rule, and what other limitations should be imposed;

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Discovery motion

Must include

certificate of conference

Discovery disputes must be raised timely or ability to challenge may be waived

Discovery disputes shall be raised in a timely manner so as to allow discovery to be completed within the discovery deadline. The failure to do so may waive a party’s ability to challenge the discovery behavior.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Amicus reply brief

An amicus may file a reply brief or participate in oral argument only with court permission.

An amicus curiae may file a reply brief or participate in oral argument only with the court’s permission.

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Exhibits

All exhibits submitted in support of or opposition to a motion must be clearly marked with divider pages. References in the parties’ filings to such exhibits should be as specific as possible (i.e., the reference should cite specific page numbers, paragraphs, line numbers, etc.). All exhibits must be marked to designate testimony or evidence referred to in the parties’ filings. Acceptable forms of markings include highlighting, bracketing, underlining or similar methods of designations but must be clear and maintain the legibility of the text. Filing parties shall submit only those excerpts of the referenced exhibits that are directly germane to the matter under consideration, or necessary to provide relevant context. Excerpted material must be clearly and prominently identified as such. Parties who file excerpts do so without prejudice to their right to timely file additional excerpts of the exhibit with reply briefs if otherwise appropriate. Responding parties may also timely file additional excerpts of the exhibit that they believe are directly germane.

All exhibits submitted in support of or opposition to a motion must be clearly marked with divider pages. References in the parties’ filings to such exhibits should be as specific as possible (i.e., the reference should cite specific page numbers, paragraphs, line numbers, etc.). All exhibits must be marked to designate testimony or evidence referred to in the parties’ filings. Acceptable forms of markings include highlighting, bracketing, underlining or similar methods of designations but must be clear and maintain the legibility of the text. Filing parties shall submit only those excerpts of the referenced exhibits that are directly germane to the matter under consideration, or necessary to provide relevant context. Excerpted material must be clearly and prominently identified as such. Parties who file excerpts do so without prejudice to their right to timely file additional excerpts of the exhibit with reply briefs if otherwise appropriate. Responding parties may also timely file additional excerpts of the exhibit that they believe are directly germane.

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Pleading

All filings must be dated and signed per FRCP 11, CrR 62.5, and e-filing procedures; original signature required for original documents.

All pleadings, motions and other filings shall be dated and signed as provided by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11, CrR 62.5, and the court’s Electronic Filing Procedures. If an original document is required to be filed with the court, any required signature thereto must also be original. The court might not consider improperly signed or unsigned documents.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Filing

Pleadings, motions, and other filings should include the listed formatting and content elements.

All pleadings, motions or other filings should include the following:

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Motion

Must include

proposed order

Proposed orders are not required for motions identified in LCR 7(d)(4), except motions seeking preliminary injunction.

Except for motions seeking preliminary injunction, proposed orders are not required for motions identified in LCR 7(d)(4).

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Motion

Motions for reconsideration must be plainly labeled, noted for consideration on the day filed, and must point out overlooked matters, new matters, and modifications sought.

A motion for reconsideration shall be plainly labeled as such. The motion shall be noted for consideration on the day it is filed. The motion shall point out with specificity the matters which the movant believes were overlooked or misapprehended by the court, any new matters being brought to the court's attention for the first time, and the particular modifications being sought in the court's prior ruling. Failure to comply with this subsection may in itself be grounds for denial of the motion.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Counsel substitution

For a change of counsel within the same law firm, no substitution order is required; the new attorney should file a Notice of Appearance and the withdrawing attorney should file a Notice of Withdrawal.

Where there has simply been a change of counsel within the same law firm, an order of substitution is not required; the new attorney should file a Notice of Appearance and the withdrawing attorney should file a Notice of Withdrawal.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Joint claim construction and prehearing statement

Joint Claim Construction and Prehearing Statement must contain specific information including agreed constructions, proposed constructions, ten most important terms, hearing length, order of presentation, live testimony positions, tutorial positions, pre-hearing conference positions, and independent expert positions.

the parties shall complete and file a Joint Claim Construction and Prehearing Statement, which shall contain the following information: (a) The construction of those claim terms, phrases, or clauses on which the parties agree; (b) Each party’s proposed construction of each disputed claim term, phrase, or clause, together with an identification of all references from the specification or prosecution history that support that construction, and an identification of any extrinsic evidence on which it intends to rely either to support its proposed construction of the claim or to oppose any other party’s proposed construction of the claim in the format of the Sample Joint Claim Chart in Appendix 2 to these Local Patent Rules; (c) The ten most important disputed claim terms. If the parties cannot agree on such terms, then they shall set forth the disputed terms upon which they agree, and each party shall identify any additional terms it believes should be construed, with a brief explanation as to why it believes the construction of such terms are important. The Court will construe a maximum of ten claim terms at the initial Markman hearing, unless the Court determines otherwise. Prioritization should be guided by the twin goals of narrowing the issues and choosing the ten claim terms for which a claim construction would be most productive in terms of setting the groundwork for possible settlement. (d) The anticipated length of time necessary for the Claim Construction Hearing; (e) The proposed order of presentation at the Claim Construction Hearing; (f) The parties’ position on whether, why, and the extent to which the Court should consider live testimony at the Claim Construction Hearing, including the identity of any witnesses a party proposes to call, and for each expert, the disclosure required by Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(2)(B) as to opinions to be offered at the Claim Construction Hearing; (g) The parties’ position as to whether there should be a tutorial on the subject matter of the patent(s) at issue and, if so, the timing of such a tutorial; (h) Whether a pre-hearing conference, prior to the Claim Construction Hearing, is necessary and, if so, the proposed subjects to be addressed and proposed dates for such conference; and (i) Whether the parties believe the Court should appoint an independent expert.

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Pleading

In all cases where the court is to review the proceedings of an administrative agency, transcripts, deposition testimony, etc., the parties shall, insofar as possible, cite the page and line of any part of the transcript or record to which their pleadings, motions or other filings refer. Citations to documents already in the record, including declarations, exhibits, and any documents previously filed, must include a citation to the docket number and the page number (e.g., Dkt. # __ at p. __) and citations to legal authority must include page numbers.

In all cases where the court is to review the proceedings of an administrative agency, transcripts, deposition testimony, etc., the parties shall, insofar as possible, cite the page and line of any part of the transcript or record to which their pleadings, motions or other filings refer. Citations to documents already in the record, including declarations, exhibits, and any documents previously filed, must include a citation to the docket number and the page number (e.g., Dkt. # __ at p. __) and citations to legal authority must include page numbers.

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Motion

Must include

certificate of conference

Motions in limine and discovery motions must include a certification of good faith conference with opposing counsel, listing date, manner, and participants.

A motion in limine pursuant to CrR 23.1(a)(6) and any motion for an order compelling disclosure or discovery must include a certification, in the motion or in a declaration or affidavit, that the movant has in good faith conferred or attempted to confer with opposing counsel in an effort to resolve the dispute without court action. The certification must list the date, manner, and participants to the conference. If the movant fails to include such a certification, the court may deny the motion without addressing the merits of the dispute.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Discovery motion

Must include

certificate of conference

Unreasonable delay in discovery may result in sanctions

Because the Court expects that the parties should contact it only as a last resort, counsel found to be unreasonably delaying discovery may be sanctioned.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Notice of related cases

The notice should include the case number, presiding judge, and parties involved in the related case, and an explanation of the relationship between or among the cases.

The notice should include the case number, presiding judge, and parties involved in the related case, and an explanation of the relationship between or among the cases.

WARNINGCivil cases

Defense counsel should allow enough time to speak to their decision makers about the information and authority, and are expected to provide any new documentation to plaintiff’s counsel at least one week before the settlement conference.

Defense counsel should allow enough time to speak to their decision makers about the information and authority, and are expected to provide any new documentation to plaintiff’s counsel at least one week before the settlement conference.

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Pleading

At the left side of the bottom of each page, an abbreviated title of the pleading, motion or other filing should be repeated, followed by the case number. The page number should be placed after the abbreviated title or in the middle of the bottom of each page. At the right side of the bottom of each page, the law firm (if any), mailing address and telephone number of the attorney or party preparing the paper should be printed or typed.

At the left side of the bottom of each page, an abbreviated title of the pleading, motion or other filing should be repeated, followed by the case number. The page number should be placed after the abbreviated title or in the middle of the bottom of each page. At the right side of the bottom of each page, the law firm (if any), mailing address and telephone number of the attorney or party preparing the paper should be printed or typed.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Declaration

A party that does not provide enough information to justify fees is presumed to have waived any fee request.

If a party fails to include information sufficient to justify an award of fees, it shall be presumed that any request for fees has been waived.

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Proposed order

Must include

proposed order

Any document requiring the signature of the court shall bear the signature of the attorney(s) presenting it preceded by the words “Presented by” on the lefthand side of the last page and shall provide as follows: “Dated this ___ day of (Insert Month), (Insert Year). “_______________________________________ “UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE [or UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE]”

Any document requiring the signature of the court shall bear the signature of the attorney(s) presenting it preceded by the words “Presented by” on the lefthand side of the last page and shall provide as follows: “Dated this ___ day of (Insert Month), (Insert Year). “_______________________________________ “UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE [or UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE]”

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Motion for protective order

Must include

certificate of conference

The court may deny a protective-order motion without reaching its merits if it lacks the required certification.

If the movant fails to include such a certification, the court may deny the motion without addressing the merits of the dispute.

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Motion

Counsel must not appear on the motion noting date unless directed by the court.

Counsel shall not appear on the date the motion is noted unless so directed by the court.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Opening claim construction brief

Opening brief cover page must include the due date of the responsive brief.

The cover page of an opening brief shall note, under the title, "Due Date: [Date]," where the date shall be the date that the responsive brief is due.

WARNING

Applies to

Trial proceedings

COVID protocol: provide electronic copies of evidence in advance of trial

COVID PROTOCOL: Counsel should provide electronic copies of all evidence to be offered in advance of trial.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Contentions

The contentions referred to above should not be filed with the Court unless they are the subject of a motion, in which case they may be attached as appropriate to the motion papers as necessary.

The contentions referred to above should not be filed with the Court unless they are the subject of a motion, in which case they may be attached as appropriate to the motion papers as necessary.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Proposed stipulated protective order

Use of the district’s model protective order is encouraged, and parties departing from it must provide a redline identifying the departures.

Parties are encouraged to use this district’s model protective order, available on the court’s website. Parties that wish to depart from the model order must provide the court with a redlined version identifying departures from the model.

WARNING

Applies to

Trial proceedings

COVID protocol: conduct necessary sidebar conferences in courtroom after jury recess

COVID PROTOCOL: If a sidebar conference is necessary, the Court will conduct any such conference in the Courtroom after giving the jury a recess

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Stipulation or stipulated motion

Stipulations and stipulated motions bind the court only if the court adopts them through an order.

Stipulations and stipulated motions shall be binding on the court only if adopted by the court through an order.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Filings referencing motion exhibits

References to motion exhibits should identify specific pages, paragraphs, lines, or similarly precise locations whenever possible.

References in the parties’ filings to such exhibits should be as specific as possible (i.e., the reference should cite specific page numbers, paragraphs, line numbers, etc.).

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Stipulated motion

Parties seeking a court order related to a stipulation should file a stipulated motion under LCR 7(d)(1).

If the parties seek a court order related to their stipulation, they should file a stipulated motion pursuant to LCR 7(d)(1).

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Stipulation

An order based on a stipulation is sufficient if “It is so ordered” or equivalent is endorsed at the end of the stipulation and signed by the court.

An order based upon a stipulation shall be sufficient if the words “It is so ordered,” or their equivalent, are endorsed on the stipulation at the close thereof and if this endorsement is signed by the court.

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Pro hac vice application

Pro hac vice application must set forth five specific items including law firm info, particular need basis, compliance acknowledgment, disciplinary history, and pending proceedings.

An application for leave to appear pro hac vice shall be promptly filed with the clerk and shall set forth: (1) the name and address of the applicant’s law firm; (2) the basis upon which “particular need” is claimed; (3) a statement that the applicant understands that he or she is charged with knowing and complying with all applicable local rules; (4) a statement that the applicant has not been disbarred or formally censured by a court of record or by a state bar association; and (5) a statement that there are no pending disciplinary proceedings against the applicant.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Motion to seal

Declarations must provide evidentiary support when necessary for a motion to seal.

Evidentiary support from declarations must be provided where necessary.

WARNINGCriminal cases

Applies to

Motion

Must include

local rule certificate

Motions for discovery must include a certification of compliance with CrR 12(b)(7).

All motions for disclosure or discovery shall contain a certification that the movant has complied with CrR 12(b)(7).

WARNING

Applies to

Trial proceedings

COVID exception: counsel may examine witnesses seated at counsel table

COVID PROTOCOL EXCEPTIONS: Counsel may choose to examine witnesses while seated at counsel's table rather than at the lectern. Counsel should endeavor to publish evidence electronically as often as possible to minimize hand-to-hand transfers.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Motion

Motions must be a single document without a table of cases or authorities.

A motion and the legal argument supporting the motion shall be filed as a single document. Motions shall not contain a table of cases or a table of authorities.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Witness waiver procedure

Waiver requests for witness sequestration must be discussed with opposing counsel first

If counsel desire a waiver of the rule with respect to a specific witness (for example, an expert), counsel shall first discuss the matter with opposing counsel and then present the request to the Court during the preliminary morning session prior to the start of trial on the particular day at issue.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Courtroom procedures

Courtroom decorum requirements: rise to address court, remain at podium, direct statements to court.

Counsel and pro se parties shall observe appropriate courtroom decorum, including that they shall rise to address the Court and remain at the podium unless granted permission to approach the bench or a witness. When not addressing a witness, or during opening and closing statements to the jury, counsel and pro se parties shall direct all statements to the Court.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Objection procedure

Frequent or protracted bench conferences are discouraged

However, frequent or protracted bench conferences are discouraged.

WARNINGCivil cases

Expert qualification questions must be brief

Questions intended to qualify the witness as an expert shall be brief.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Videotaped deposition

Disputes over videotaped deposition testimony should be summarized in joint pretrial statement

If differences remain, the dispute(s) should be summarized in the joint pretrial statement and the matter will be addressed at the pretrial conference.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Discovery motion

Opposed discovery motions must include a verbatim recitation of the discovery request and objection at issue, or attach a copy.

If the Court permits the filing of an opposed discovery motion, the motion shall contain a verbatim recitation of the discovery request and objection at issue or shall attach a copy of such.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Administrative record

Administrative records must be filed electronically; no physical copies accepted.

In matters requiring that an administrative record be filed with the Court, parties must provide a copy of the record to the Court in an electronic format. No physical copy of the record shall be filed.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Joint status report and discovery plan

The Court will not hold a Rule 16(b) Initial Status Conference absent specific circumstances; instead, the parties must file a combined Joint Status Report and Discovery Plan under FRCP 26(f) and Local Civil Rule 26(f), after which the Court will issue a Scheduling Order.

Unless specific circumstances require it, the Court will not hold a Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b) Initial Status Conference. Instead, the Court will review the parties' combined Joint Status Report and Discovery Plan as required by FRCP 26(f) and Local Civil Rule 26(f) and issue a Scheduling Order as soon as practicable thereafter.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Objection procedure

Additional objection discussion requires request to approach bench

If additional discussion is needed, counsel must request to approach the bench.

WARNINGCivil cases

Applies to

Notice of settlement

If a case settles in whole or in part, the parties must promptly file a notice of settlement and advise the Court how much time they need to file dismissal papers.

If the matter settles, in whole or in part, the parties shall promptly file a notice of settlement and advise the Court how much time is needed to file dismissal papers.