Western District of Washington Document Filing Requirements

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Disbursement order

Must include

specific language

Disbursement orders must include specific language authorizing check(s) to payees.

Each proposed order seeking disbursement of registry funds shall contain the following language: “... the clerk is authorized and directed to draw a check(s) on the funds deposited in the registry of this court in the principal amount of $ plus all accrued interest, payable to (name of payee) and mail or deliver the check(s) to (name of payee).”

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Proposed order

Must include

proposed order

Proposed orders must include 'Presented by' signature line and specific date/judge format.

(7) Proposed Orders. 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 left- hand 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]”

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Habeas corpus petition

Counsel must be appointed at earliest practicable time unless pro se or retained counsel.

Unless petitioner is proceeding pro se or is represented by retained counsel, counsel shall be appointed in every such case at the earliest practicable time.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Civil action

Must include

notice of related cases

Parties must file Notice of Related Cases within 5 days of discovering related actions.

Unless an action is listed as related in the Civil Cover Sheet or the original Notice of Related Cases, parties who have appeared must file a Notice of Related Cases alerting the court within five days of learning of any other action that was or is pending in this district that may be related to the party’s case.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Amended pleading

Must include

filing deadline

Amended pleading must be filed and served within 14 days of order granting leave to amend.

If a motion for leave to amend is granted, the party who was given leave to amend must file and serve the amended pleading on all parties within fourteen (14) days of the filing of the order granting leave to amend, unless the court orders otherwise.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Praecipe

Must include

case number, docket number, specific language

If the party seeks to add an additional document in support of a previous filing, the praecipe must set forth why the document was not included with the original filing and reference the original filing by docket number.

If the party seeks to add an additional document in support of a previous filing, the praecipe must set forth why the document was not included with the original filing and reference the original filing by docket number.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Pro hac vice application

Must include

showing of particular need

Out-of-district attorneys may appear pro hac vice with application and showing of particular need.

Any member in good standing of the bar of any court of the United States, or of the highest court of any state, or of any organized territory of the United States, and who neither resides nor maintains an office for the practice of law in the Western District of Washington normally will be permitted upon application and upon a showing of particular need to appear and participate in a particular case pro hac vice.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Motion to proceed pro se

Must include

proposed order, certificate of service

Parties represented by counsel cannot act pro se without court order and proper certification.

(5) When a party is represented by an attorney of record in a case, the party cannot appear or act on his or her own behalf in that case, or take any step therein, until after the party requests by motion to proceed on his or her own behalf, certifies in the motion that he or she has provided copies of the motion to his or her current counsel and to the opposing party, and is granted an order of substitution by the court terminating the party's attorney as counsel and substituting the party in to proceed pro se; provided, that the court may in its discretion hear a party in open court, notwithstanding the fact that he or she is represented by an attorney.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Habeas corpus petition

Must include

filing fee

Petitions for habeas corpus shall be accompanied by the appropriate filing fee.

Petitions for habeas corpus shall be accompanied by the appropriate filing fee.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Deposition transcript

Must include

highlighting, objections in margins

Deposition transcript must include all designations, highlighting, and objections in margins

The party intending to offer the deposition testimony at trial shall prepare a single copy of the deposition transcript containing the parties’ designations, highlighting all testimony, indicating any objections and all responses to objections in the margins, all in a single color used only by that party. A failure to designate an objection in this manner shall constitute a waiver, even if the objection was previously stated at the deposition. Counsel shall then file the deposition designations with the pretrial order. The court’s rulings on objections shall be made part of the record.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Evidentiary hearing

Must include

transcript

Transcript must be prepared and provided immediately after evidentiary hearing

If an evidentiary hearing is held, the court will order the preparation of a transcript of the hearing, which is to be immediately provided to petitioner and respondent for use in briefing and argument.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Notice of intention new trial

Within ten (10) court days after notice of entry of a verdict, a party may file with the clerk and serve on each adverse party a notice of intention to move for a new trial on any of the grounds specified in subsection (n)(3) of this rule.

Within ten (10) court days after notice of entry of a verdict, a party may file with the clerk and serve on each adverse party a notice of intention to move for a new trial on any of the grounds specified in subsection (n)(3) of this rule.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Exhibit list

Objections to exhibits must reference Federal Rule of Evidence numbers or party codes.

An objection based on a Fed. R. Evid. should reference the rule number; additional objections should be referenced by a code that the parties include with the exhibit list.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Trial exhibit

Must include

original copy

Parties must provide clerk with original and copy of each trial exhibit on morning of trial.

Unless otherwise ordered by the court, on the morning of trial each party appearing shall present marked and tagged trial exhibits to the clerk. Exhibits shall be marked in accordance with the Pretrial Order or other order of the court. The clerk shall be provided with an original and a copy of each exhibit; provided, that leave may be sought from the court to dispense with providing copies of exhibits where bulk or other considerations would make copying, or the use of copies, impractical.

CRITICALCivil cases

Must include

proposed order, certificate of service

Attorney of record remains responsible after final judgment unless properly withdrawn.

(7) Unless the attorney withdraws in accordance with these rules, the authority and duty of an attorney of record shall continue after final judgment.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Motion to compel discovery

Must include

filing deadline

Motions to compel discovery must be filed on or before discovery deadline.

Any motion to compel discovery shall be filed and served on or before the discovery deadline or as directed by court order.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Rule 26f conference

(iv) whether ESI stored in a database or a database management system can be identified and produced by querying the database for discoverable information, resulting in a report or a reasonably usable and exportable electronic file for review by the requesting counsel or party.

(iv) whether ESI stored in a database or a database management system can be identified and produced by querying the database for discoverable information, resulting in a report or a reasonably usable and exportable electronic file for review by the requesting counsel or party.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Responsive brief

Must include

requests to strike

Requests to strike must be included in responsive brief, not separate motion

Requests to strike material contained in or attached to submissions of opposing parties shall not be presented in a separate motion to strike, but shall instead be included in the responsive brief, and will be considered with the underlying motion.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Rule 26f conference

(J) if one or more of the parties intend to engage in the discovery of ESI and are unable to agree to the Model ESI Agreement or a modified version thereof, whether they are able to reach agreement regarding the following topics and the substance of their agreement: (i) the nature, location, and scope of ESI to be preserved by the parties; (ii) the formats for production of ESI (whether TIFF with a companion text file, native, or some other reasonably usable format); (iii) methodologies for identifying relevant and discoverable ESI for production, including: (a) methods for identifying an initial subset of sources of ESI that are most likely to contain the relevant and discoverable information as well as methodologies for culling the relevant and discoverable ESI from that initial subset; (b) identifying the custodians and non-custodial data sources, including all third party data sources, most likely to have discoverable information; (c) any plans to filter data based on file type, date ranges, sender, receiver, custodian, search terms, or other similar parameters; and (d) the use of any computer- or technology-assisted review, including any plans to use keyword searching, mathematical or thesaurus based topic or concept clustering, or other advanced culling technologies.

(J) if one or more of the parties intend to engage in the discovery of ESI and are unable to agree to the Model ESI Agreement or a modified version thereof, whether they are able to reach agreement regarding the following topics and the substance of their agreement: (i) the nature, location, and scope of ESI to be preserved by the parties; (ii) the formats for production of ESI (whether TIFF with a companion text file, native, or some other reasonably usable format); (iii) methodologies for identifying relevant and discoverable ESI for production, including: (a) methods for identifying an initial subset of sources of ESI that are most likely to contain the relevant and discoverable information as well as methodologies for culling the relevant and discoverable ESI from that initial subset; (b) identifying the custodians and non-custodial data sources, including all third party data sources, most likely to have discoverable information; (c) any plans to filter data based on file type, date ranges, sender, receiver, custodian, search terms, or other similar parameters; and (d) the use of any computer- or technology-assisted review, including any plans to use keyword searching, mathematical or thesaurus based topic or concept clustering, or other advanced culling technologies.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Corporate disclosure statement

Corporate disclosure must identify parent corporations, major shareholders, members, partners, or state none exist.

The corporate disclosure statement must do one of the following: (1) Identify any parent corporation and any publicly held corporation owning more than 10% of its stock; any member or owner in a joint venture or limited liability corporation (LLC); all partners in a partnership or limited liability partnership (LLP); and any corporate member, if the party is any other unincorporated association; or (2) State that there “is no parent, shareholder, member, or partner to identify as required by LCR 7.1(a)(1).

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Pretrial order

Expert witness limits apply to each party.

(a) Each party shall be limited to _____ expert witness(es) on the issues of _______.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Civil action

Must include

related cases listing

Plaintiffs must list related cases on Civil Cover Sheet and file Notice of Related Cases.

A plaintiff must list all related cases in the Civil Cover Sheet and, if there are any, file a Notice of Related Cases, with its first appearance;

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Scheduling order

Must include

written format

Court must enter written scheduling order as prescribed in Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b).

The court shall enter a written scheduling order as prescribed in Rule 16(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Civil rights complaint

The complaint must identify the second right allegedly violated and who violated it.

Identify the second right you believe was violated and by whom:

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Jury instructions

Must include

table of contents

All jury instructions must include a table of contents with specific information.

A table of contents shall be included with all jury instructions submitted to the court. The table of contents shall set forth the following information: (1) the number of the instruction; (2) a brief title of the instruction; (3) the source of the instruction; (4) the page number of the instruction; and (5) the proposing party(ies).

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Complaint

Class action complaints must allege common questions of law and fact.

3. The alleged questions of law and fact claimed to be common to the class,

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Habeas corpus petition

Must include

local rule certificate

Party in custody must complete all required form information.

The party in custody shall provide all information required by the form.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Scheduling order

Must include

esi agreement

(4) In the scheduling order or by separate order, the court may require the parties to adhere to an agreement for the discovery and disclosure of electronically stored information.

(4) In the scheduling order or by separate order, the court may require the parties to adhere to an agreement for the discovery and disclosure of electronically stored information.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Registry deposit order

Must include

judge signature, specific language

All registry deposits require judge-signed order with specific language.

All deposits into the Registry of the Court must be accompanied by an order approving the deposit signed by a judge. Each signed order shall contain the following language: “the Clerk is directed to deposit funds into the Registry of the Court in the principal amount of $____.”

CRITICAL

Applies to

Opening brief

List all ALJ errors on page one of opening brief

Please list on page one of the opening brief all of the errors you believe the ALJ committed in denying you benefits and then explain each error in greater detail.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Notice of removal

Must include

counsel contact info, certificate of service

Removal requires certificate of service with counsel contact info.

(2) A certificate of service which lists all counsel and pro se parties who have appeared in the action with their contact information, including email address.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Conference

Must include

principal attorney attendance

Principal trial attorney must attend conference.

The attorney principally responsible for trying the case on behalf of each party shall attend the conference.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Notice of removal

Must include

state court records, verification of records

Removal requires filing state court records within 14 days with verification.

The removing defendant(s) shall, within fourteen days of filing the notice of removal, file with the clerk of this court black-on-white copies of all additional records and proceedings in the state court, together with defendant’s or defense counsel’s verification that they are true and complete copies of all the records and proceedings in the state court proceeding.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Habeas corpus petition

Notice of intent must include petitioner name, conviction district, incarceration location, and state court status.

The notice shall state the name of the petitioner, the district in which petitioner was convicted, the place of petitioner’s incarceration, and the status of petitioner’s state court proceedings.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Habeas corpus petition

Must include

prior relief disclosure, execution date disclosure

Petitions must disclose prior relief attempts and execution dates.

All petitions (a) shall state whether petitioner has previously sought relief arising out of the same matter from this court or any other federal court, together with the ruling and reasons of such court, and (b) shall set forth any scheduled execution date.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Summary judgment motion

Statements of material facts must be included within the memorandum for summary judgment motions.

A party filing a motion for summary judgment or a response in opposition thereto shall not separately file a statement of material facts or opposing statement of facts but shall include them within the memorandum and within any word or, if written by hand or typewriter, page limitations set forth in these rules.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Habeas corpus petition

Counsel must file notice of intent to file habeas petition with clerk and send to Washington AG Corrections Division.

Whenever counsel determines that a petition will be filed in this court, he or she shall promptly file with the clerk of this court and send to the Washington Attorney General’s Corrections Division a written notice of intention to file a petition.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Statutory interpleader filing

Must include

ownership disclaimer, statutory interpleader

DOF created when plaintiff files statutory interpleader disclaiming ownership.

A Disputed Ownership Fund (DOF) is created when a plaintiff who disclaims ownership of the funds at issue files a statutory interpleader action under 28 U.S.C. § 1335.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Arbitration consent

Plaintiff must secure and file consent forms for arbitration.

The plaintiff shall be responsible for securing the execution of consent forms by the parties and for filing such forms with the clerk of court.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Complaint

In diversity cases, complaints must identify citizenship of all parties and members of LLCs, LLPs, and partnerships.

If plaintiff is asserting that this court has jurisdiction based on diversity, the complaint must identify the citizenship of the parties, and, if any of the parties is a limited liability corporation (LLC), a limited liability partnership (LLP), or a partnership, identify the citizenship of the owners/partners/members of those entities to establish the court's jurisdiction.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Pretrial conference

Pretrial conference must be held within 150 days of agreement approval

The pretrial conference shall be held no later than one hundred fifty (150) days after the agreement is approved by the court.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Corporate disclosure statement

In diversity cases, corporate disclosure must list states of citizenship for all identified parties.

In diversity actions, for any person or entity identified in (a)(1) above, the corporate disclosure statement must also list those states in which the party, owners, partners, or members are citizens.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Civil rights complaint

The complaint must identify the third right allegedly violated and who violated it.

Identify the third right you believe was violated and by whom:

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Voir dire questions

Must include

caption, judge name

Suggested questions of either party to be asked of the jury by the court on voir dire shall be submitted to the court on or before _______________.

Suggested questions of either party to be asked of the jury by the court on voir dire shall be submitted to the court on or before _______________.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Motion

Motion arguments must be included within the motion document, not in separate briefs.

The argument in support of the motion shall not be made in a separate document but shall be submitted as part of the motion itself.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Business entity appearance

Must include

counsel requirement

Business entities (except sole proprietorships) must be represented by counsel.

A business entity, except a sole proprietorship, must be represented by counsel.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Witness list

Counsel must provide witness list to opposing counsel by end of each trial day.

Not later than the close of each day of trial, counsel shall provide to opposing counsel a list of the witnesses he or she intends to call the following day of trial. This requirement may be modified for good cause shown.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Proposed order for interpleader

Must include

specific language

Proposed order must identify funds as CRIS DOF interpleader funds under 28 U.S.C. § 1335.

The proposed order accompanying the motion must correctly identify the interpleader funds by stating that the funds are to be “deposited into the Court Registry Investment System as Disputed Ownership Funds (DOF) interpleader funds under 28 U.S.C. § 1335.”

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Habeas corpus petition

Habeas corpus petitions and § 2255 motions must use court forms.

Petitions for habeas corpus and motions filed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2255 must use or substantially follow this district’s forms, which are available on the court’s website.

CRITICALCivil cases

Applies to

Filing

Must include

signature

Multiple signature methods are acceptable, including typed 's/ [Name]' for certain filers.

Except as otherwise required by law, a signature means any of the following when affixed to a document with the intent to sign the document: (1) A name or mark the signer created by hand in ink on paper. (2) A name or mark the signer created by hand using a stylus or other mechanism for creating a digital drawing. (3) A mechanical or digital reproduction of the signature described in (a)(1) or (a)(2), if the filer retains: (A) For a document executed on paper, an original paper copy of the signature page of the document; or (B) For a document to which a signature image is affixed, the original digital file to which the signer affixed the signature. (4) A name or mark the signer affixed digitally using a process that automatically creates a certificate of completion identifying the signer. A signature created with DocuSign, Adobe Acrobat Sign, or other similar software is presumed to meet this definition. (5) A mechanical or digital reproduction of the signature described in (a)(4), if the filer retains an original digital copy of the executed document and certificate of completion. (6) The signer’s name typed with the “s/ [Name]” convention if: (A) The signer is any of: (i) A lawyer admitted to the bar of this court; (ii) A lawyer admitted pro hac vice (or seeking pro hac vice admission) in the matter in which the signature is submitted; (iii) A pro se litigant in the matter in which the signature is submitted, provided that the signature does not authenticate a statement made under penalty of perjury; or (iv) The staff of a person described in (a)(6)(i)-(iii) when the signature is affixed to a certificate of service; and (B) The document: (i) Requires only one signature and the filer or the filer’s staff, at the filer’s direction, typed the “s/ [Name]” on the document; or (ii) Requires multiple signatures and the filer’s signature conforms with (a)(6)(B)(i) and for the additional signatures, the filer confirmed that the contents of the document are acceptable to all signers and received express written permission from the additional signer or signers to type (or direct the filer’s staff to type) the additional “s/ [Name]” signature or signatures.