b'Spring/Summer 2019Page 5 Special Requirements of the2.Obtaining a Hearing Date.Parties must Central District Local Rulesfile and serve a motion no later than 28 days beforeahearingunderLocalRule6-1.Each By Diana Palacios and Samrah Mahmoud * judge has his or her own process for obtaining a hearing date.The process is usually stated on The Central District of Cali- theirindividualwebpageorintheirstanding fornia hosts one of the larg- orders, and it can range from calling the Court-estandmostsophisticatedroom Deputy Clerk to reserve a hearing date 24 caseloadsofanyU.S.Dis- hoursbeforefilingtosimplycheckingthe trict Court in the nation.Itjudgesonlinecalendarto ensurethat thede-also has one of the most com- sired hearing date is open.It is also often good plexsetsofcivillocalrulespractice to clear the date with opposing counsel whencomparedtodistrictsas a courtesy before filing.Bottom line: deter-inotherstatesandeveninmine the appropriate process ahead of time and California.At163pages make sure to factor that in to your filing plans.135 page of rules plus an in- 3.Figuring out when oppositions and re-dexandanappendixthepliesaredue.Local Rules 7-9 and 7-10 pro-Central Districts Civil Localvide that oppositions are due 21 days from the Rulescanbedauntingforhearing date and replies are due 14 days from youngandseasonedattor- the hearing date, respectively.Once you have neys alike.Violating the lo- your hearing date, you can determine the oppo-cal rules can expose you to asition and reply deadlines from there.Keep in rangeofconsequencesin- mind that if an opposition or reply is due on a cluding a notice of deficiency emailed to every- courtholiday,individualjudgesmayadvance onewhohasappearedinthecase,annoyedopposition and reply deadlines to the last court chambers staff, or your motion stricken or de- day before the holiday. nied by the court.Here are ten requirements particular to the Central District Local Rules to4.Brief length, font size, and spacing.Lo-keepinmindasyouprepareyournextnon- cal Rule 11-3.1.1 requires 14-point font for any discovery motion for filing. 1 Judges can changeproportionally spaced font like Times New Ro-the local rules in their own standing and sched- man.Textmustbedoublespacedexceptfor ulingorders,however,somakesuretocheckfootnotes, which can be single spaced.L.R. 11-your judges particular orders and webpage be- 3.6.Memoranda of points and authorities and fore any filings.trial briefs are limited to 25 pages.L.R. 11-6.1.Meeting and Conferring.Local Rule 7-3Manyjudges,however,placeashorterpage requires parties to meet and confer at least 7limit on reply briefs, so be sure to check your days prior to the filing of any motion to discusjudgesorders.Forinstance,JudgePhillips thoroughly . . . the substance of the contemplat- limits reply briefs to 12 pages in her standing ed motion, preferably in-person.If the partiesorder. are unable to resolve the issues raised by the5.Tables of Contents and Authorities.Lo-motion,themovingpartymustspecificallycal Rule 11-8 requires Tables of Contents and state in the notice of motion the following: ThisTables of Authorities for any briefs over 10 pag-motionismadefollowingtheconferenceofes.Running these tables can be tricky and is counsel pursuant to L.R. 7-3 which took placeoften fraught with technology problems, so it is on (date). This is a critical rule and many judg- advisable to start early in creating them.eswilldenyorstrikeamotionthatdoesnot contain the required statement.'