Carol E. Jackson - Chief United States District Judge

United States District Court - Eastern District of Missouri
111 South Tenth Street, Suite 3.300, St Louis, MO 63102
St. Louis Phone: (314)244-7900 - Cape Girardeau Phone: (573)335-8538
Clerk of Court: Jim Woodward, jim_woodward@moed.uscourts.gov

Judge's Requirements

1. Local and Federal Rules

Many answers to frequently asked questions are contained in the Local Rules of the Eastern District of Missouri, the Federal Rules of Civil and Criminal Procedure, and the Federal Rules of Evidence. All counsel are expected to know these rules and to follow them.

2. Electronic Filing

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri has adopted the Case Management/Electronic Case Files (CM/ECF) system. Under CM/ECF, all pleadings, motions and other documents must be filed in electronic format. This requirement does not apply to pro se parties or to attorneys who have applied for and been granted an exemption from electronic filing. For more information concerning electronic filing and service of documents, please see the CM/ECF Administrative Procedures Manual available at www.moed.uscourts.gov and the CM/ECF & PACER portions of this website.

3. Informal Matters and Motions to Continue

I do not conduct informal matters. All requests for relief must be submitted in the form of a motion. If the opposing party consents to the relief you are requesting, you should state this in your motion.

Motions to continue a trial setting should be made as far in advance of the trial date as possible. The length of the requested continuance must be stated in the motion. In criminal cases, the motion must include information sufficient for making the required Speedy Trial Act findings. If a motion to continue does not include a proposed new trial date, then the trial will be re-set on a date that the Court deems appropriate.

4. New Attorney Admissions

Oaths of admission for new attorneys are scheduled by appointment only. I am generally available to administer oaths of admission at anytime and am willing to do so at the convenience of counsel.

5. Scheduling Conferences and Case Management Orders

Civil cases are usually set for Rule 16 conferences after all defendants have answered. If for some reason a party believes a conference should be set sooner, that party should file a motion. The Order setting Rule 16 conference, as well as the Case Management Orders, are self-explanatory. Please read them and follow them. When you come to the Rule 16 conference, be prepared to discuss the facts of your case and all other matters set out in the Rule 16 order.

If the opposing attorney or party does not cooperate in preparing a joint proposed scheduling plan, you are expected to file a proposed plan anyway. The Court may cancel the Rule 16 conference if a proposed scheduling plan is not timely filed.

Counsel who will be handling the trial must attend the Rule 16 conference. If you cannot attend the conference, you should let me know who will be attending in your place. Please do not send a substitute who knows nothing about the case or who cannot discuss settlement or a trial date. For the convenience of counsel (particularly out-of-town counsel), I am amenable to conducting the Rule 16 conference by telephone.

6. Pretrial Conference

I do not normally have a formal conference before the trial. However, if you believe a conference is necessary you may request one.

7. Voir Dire

Typically, the attorneys are permitted to conduct part of the voir dire examination of the jury panel. There are, however, two rules that must be followed. First, counsel’s questions must initially be directed to the panel as a whole. Individual examination or a prospective juror is permitted only if warranted by his/her response to an earlier question or to clarify information contained in the jury list. The voir dire examination is not your opportunity to develop a meaningful relationship with a prospective juror. Please don’t attempt to use it as such. Second, do not repeat questions that have been asked by the Court or by other counsel. I do not place a time limit on the voir dire examination, but I will terminate your examination if you believe it repetitious or unduly lengthy.

After all questioning has been completed, the panel will be removed from the courtroom and I will immediately ask for challenges made for cause. No challenges for cause or statements that the panel is acceptable may be made in front of the jury panel. After the cause challenges are resolved, the parties will make their peremptory strikes. Challenges to the manner in which a party has exercised its peremptory strikes must be made promptly before the jurors are seated.

The jury lists that are provided at the beginning of the voir dire examination are not to be copied or duplicated in any way. The lists are not to be removed from the courtroom and they must be returned to the clerk after the jury is selected.

8. Courtroom procedures

Use of Podium. Counsel are expected to stand at the podium during opening statements, examination of witnesses, and closing arguments. If there are exhibits to be viewed by a witness, you may ask to approach the witness for that purpose. It is unnecessary to repeat your request to approach each time you have an exhibit to show the witness, your initial request to approach is sufficient.
Evidence Presentation Equipment. The evidence presentation equipment in the courtroom must be used. Counsel are expected to be trained on its use before the trial. To arrange an appointment for training, please contact the office of the Clerk of the Court
Addressing the Court. You are expected to stand when making objections or when otherwise addressing the Court.
Evidentiary Objections. No evidentiary objections shall be argued in the presence of the jury. Counsel should state a one-word or one-phrase ground for the objections. Counsel must state the legal basis for their objections in a word or, at most, a phrase without elaboration or argument (unless called to the bench).
Bench Conferences. I will be available to discuss matters outside of the jury’s presence fifteen minutes before the start of each trial day, during the lunch recesses, and at the conclusion of the trial day. Please do not request a bench conference to discuss a matter that could have been presented during these times. Bench conferences during trial are discouraged. For purposes of “protecting the record” and assisting the court of appeals, counsel may explain their positions and the Court may explain its ruling on the record after the jury has been excused for a scheduled break or for the day.
Exhibits. You must mark all exhibits in advance of trial using the designations as set forth in the Case Management Order. Do not ask the court reporter or clerk to make exhibits for you or to provide exhibit stickers. You are not required to make a copy of the exhibits for the Court, but it is helpful if you do.
Audio-Visual Evidence. If there are audio or video recordings to be presented at trial, the attorneys must make a good faith effort to resolve, before trial, all disputes about the recordings and their transcription. Counsel must notify the Court before trial of any disputes that have not been resolved.
Jury Instructions. I typically give the general instructions for use at the commencement of trial and at the close of trial that are contained in the Eighth Circuit Model Jury Instructions. I also use the Model instructions for substantive matters, where appropriate. Because the jury is given the instructions in writing, you should have a “clean” copy (i.e., no citations, no caption, etc.) available for this purpose. Each side shall provide the Court a disk containing that party’s proposed instructions in Word Perfect format.
Opening Statements. Opening statements, if any, shall be limited to 15 minutes per party, except that multiple parties on one side of a case who are represented by the same counsel shall jointly have 15 minutes for opening statement.
Closing Arguments. After all the evidence is presented. I will tell you how much time will be allotted for closing arguments. The length of the trial is not necessarily determinative of the amount of time you will be given to argue your case. Consequently, you should prepare yourself for the possibility of getting less time than you want or think you should have. The plaintiff (or the government in a criminal case) must use more than 50% of its time in the first part of its closing argument. You must let the clerk know how you will divide your argument and whether you want a warning before your time expires.

9. Courtroom Decorum

Everyone who is able to do so is expected to stand when the jury enters the courtroom.

No eating or drinking of beverages other than water (in cups, not in bottles) is permitted in the courtroom at any time, including recesses. I particularly dislike gum chewing, so please don’t do it in my presence. If you or your clients or witnesses have a cell phone or other audible device, make sure it is silenced before it is brought into the courtroom. Otherwise, it may be confiscated.

Counsel are to address each other and all adult witnesses by their surnames with appropriate titles. Do not call any witnesses by their first names, even your clients, and please advise your witnesses not to address counsel by their first names. This rule governs how we address one another in the courtroom - - -. It is not a rule that requires witnesses to refer to individuals in a particular way in their testimony.

10. Civility

I realize that some lawyers believe that incivility is just part of the litigation process. I do not share that belief. I am courteous to all who enter my chambers and courtroom. I expect and will tolerate no less from you.