CASE MANAGEMENT IN CIVIL CASES

Scheduling of Events: The scheduling of a case begins when a civil case is filed. Thereafter, the case is managed in five (5) clerical steps and four (4) judicial steps.
Clerical Steps:

Summons shall be served in accordance with the Ohio Rules of Procedure. In the event there is a failure of service, a deputy clerk shall notify counsel immediately. If counsel fails to obtain service of summons within six (6) months from the date the cause of action has been filed, then the deputy clerk shall notify counsel that the case will be dismissed in ten (10) days unless good cause is shown to the contrary.
Upon perfection of service, the deputy clerk shall notify counsel of the default and that a failure to submit an entry within fifteen (15) days may result in the case being dismissed.
After any responsive pleading is filed, the clerk shall immediately forward said pleading and file to the Judge so that the matter may be set for a hearing.
If no action has been taken on a file for a six (6) month period and the case is not set for trial, then the clerk shall notify the party that the matter will be dismissed within one (1) week unless good cause is shown.
When a file has been marked “settlement entry to come” and the entry has not been received within thirty (30) days, then the clerk shall notify the party that his/her case will be dismissed unless the entry is received within ten (10) days.

Judicial Steps:

Motions: All motions must be in writing and accompanied by a written memorandum containing citations or arguments of counsel. Opposing counsel shall answer in like manner within fourteen (14) days thereafter. All motions will be considered submitted at the end of said fourteen (14) day period unless time is extended by the Court. There will be no oral hearings granted in said motions unless the parties request an oral hearing in writing and the Court deems it necessary.
Pretrial: For the purpose of this rule, “pretrial” shall mean a court supervised conference chiefly designed to produce an amicable settlement. The term “party” or “parties” used hereinafter shall mean the party or parties to the action, and/or his/hers, or their attorney of record. Any attorney of record for a party to the action who fails to attend at a scheduled pretrial conference, without just cause being shown, may be punished for contempt of this Court. Notice of pretrial conference shall be given to all counsel of record by mail and / or by telephone from the clerk not less than seven (7) days prior to the conference. Any application for continuance of the conference shall be addressed to the Judge to whom the case has been assigned. Counsel attending the pretrial conference must have complete authority to stipulate on items of evidence and must have full settlement authority. The primary purpose of the pretrial conference shall be to achieve an amicable settlement of the controversy in suit. The Court shall attempt to narrow legal issues, to reach stipulations as to facts in controversy and, in general, to shorten the time and expense of trial. The Court will file a pretrial statement to become part of the record and the case embracing all stipulations, admissions, and other matters which have come before it in the pretrial. The Court shall, at that time, determine whether or not trial briefs should be submitted and shall fix a date when they are to be filed. Any Judge presiding at pretrial conference of trial shall have the authority to dismiss the action for want of prosecution on motion of defendant upon failure of plaintiff and/or his/her counsel to appear in person at any pretrial conference or trial; to order the plaintiff to proceed with the case and to decide and determine all matters ex parte upon the failure of the defendant to appear in person or by counsel at any pretrial conference or trial as required; and to make such other orders as the Court may deem appropriate under all the circumstances. If the case cannot be settled at pretrial, then the case will be set for trial at a time agreeable to all parties, or at the option of the Court.
Continuances: No party shall be granted a continuance of a trial or a hearing without a written motion from the party or his/her counsel stating the reason for the continuance. When a continuance is requested for the reason that counsel is scheduled to appear in another case assigned for trial on the same date in the same or another trial court of this state, the case which was first set for trial shall have priority and shall be tried on the date assigned. Criminal cases assigned for trial have priority over civil cases assigned for trial. The granting of any other request for continuance of a scheduled trial is a matter within the discretion of the trial court. If a designated trial attorney has such a number of cases assigned for trial in courts of this state so as to cause undue delay in the disposition of such cases, the administrative judge may require the trial attorney to provide a substitute trial attorney. If the trial attorney was appointed by the Court, the Court shall appoint a substitute trial attorney.
Judgment Entries: Counsel for the party in whose favor an order of judgment is rendered shall prepare a journal entry. That entry shall be submitted to opposing counsel within five (5) days of the decision. Opposing counsel shall approve or reject the entry within five (5) days. Within fifteen (15) days of the decision, the journal entry shall be submitted to the Judge, or thereafter, the Court will prepare the journal entry. Entries of settlement may be filed at any time. The avoidance of trial by settlement shall be allowed without the filing of an entry, but such entry shall be filed within thirty (30) days or the case will be dismissed for want of prosecution. Upon notification from the clerk that the case has defaulted, prevailing counsel shall submit an application for default judgment within fifteen (15) days or the case will be dismissed for want of prosecution. The journal entry shall state which party will pay the court costs.

This matter came before the court for the implementation of a Local Rule of practice that promotes a procedure to facilitate the expeditious dispostion of civil and small claim cases.

The Court determines there is an immediate need for the following rule which is adopted without prior notice and opportunity comment. If an action is contested and no later than the first pretrial conference, the Plaintiff must provide sufficient documentation, including the following:

1. The document establishing the account which names the Defendant; 2. A beginning balance of zero; 3. The item or items, dated and identifiable by number or otherwise, representing charges, or debits and credits; 4. A running or developing balance with permits the calculation of the amount claimed to be due.

In the event the Plaintiff is unable to comply with the above requirements, an affidavit listing the actions taken shall be filed with the Court. Said affidavit must be signed by either an officer of the Plaintiff or legal counsel. No Judgment in a contested action will be granted unless these provisions are met or the Court determines that the Plaintiff has made reasonable effort to comply.

This matter came the Court for the Amendment of the Local Rule as to Actions based on Accounts. The Court determines there is an immediate need for the following amendment to the Rule which is adopted without prior notice and opportunity to comment. This Amendment to the Rule is effective upon filing.

The prior Rule filed October 1, 2009 shall remain in full force and effect and is amended to include the following:

For accounts based on credit card obligations, if the matter is uncontested and set for Default Hearing or if an action is contested, no later than the first pretrial, the Plaintiff must provide sufficient documentation, including the following:

No Judgment shall be granted unless these provisions are met or the Court determines that the Plaintiff has made reasonable effort to comply.

The Court determines that there must be the immediate implementation of the following local rule for all cases in the Small Claim Division of this Court.

B. If a sole proprietorship, by identifying it as such. The business address must also be listed.

C. If a partnership, by identifying it as such, either general or limited, and by naming the partners. The business address must also be listed.

D. If a limited liability company, by identifying it as such and by listing the exact name on file with the Office of the Secretary of State. The business address must also be listed.

E. If a corporation, by identifying it as such and listing the exact corporate name on file with the Office of the Secretary of State. The business address must also be listed.

2. If an individual is a party to a small claims matter, he/she must sign all pleadings and appear at all hearings. Alternatively, he/she may retain an attorney to represent him/her.

3. If a party to a small claims matter is sole proprietor (owner), the owner must sign all pleadings and appear at all hearings. Alternatively, the owner may retain an attorney to represent him/her.

4. If a party to a small claims matter is a partnership, one or both of the partners must sign the pleadings and must appear at all hearings. Alternatively, an attorney may be retained by the partnership to represent it.

5. If a party to a small claims matter is a limited liability company, the company may present a claim or defense through a non-attorney bona fide officer or salaried employee provided that person does not engage in cross-examination, argument, or other acts of advocacy. Alternatively, an attorney may be retained by a limited liability company to represent it.

6. If a party to a small claims matter is a corporation, which is a real party in interest, it may commence an action and appear through an attorney. Such corporation may, through any bona fide officer or salaried employee, file and present its claim or defense, provided such corporation does not, in the absence of representation by an attorney, engage in cross-examination, argument, or other acts of advocacy.

Scheduling of all criminal cases will begin after the arraignment hearing. Thereafter, cases will be managed as follows:

1. Notification Procedure. The Assignment Clerk shall be required to notify only the following individuals when setting cases to be heard for pretrial or trial:

The following must be notified (subpoenas are recommended) by the representing counsel if their presence is required at pretrial or trial:

If a motion for continuance is timely filed and granted by the Court and subpoenas have been served prior to the granting of any continuance, the burden of notifying those subpoenaed of such continuance remains that of the representing/requesting counsel.

2. Continuances. All requests for continuances should be filed within 72 hours and must be filed within 24 hours of the date and time the scheduled case is set to be heard. Oral requests and untimely filed written requests for continuances will ordinarily not be granted. No party shall be granted a continuance of a pretrial or trial without a written motion from the party or counsel stating the reason for the continuance. Any counsel having a scheduling conflict with another court shall also submit proof of prior notification by that court. A dated copy of that court's docket of the day in question shall accompany any request for a continuance in this Court based upon this reason. A failure to provide such proof or when this Court provides the first notification shall be cause to deny the requested continuance.

3. Time Waiver. The Court will deem a time waiver to apply whenever it grants a continuance requested by the defendant or by the defendant and the state jointly. It shall be clearly understood that the granted continuance shall allow the Court a reasonable amount of time to set the case for trial.

4. Motions. Unless made before the Court on the record, a motion shall be made in writing and accompanied by a written memorandum containing the arguments of counsel. Motions must be filed within the time limits established by the Ohio Rules of Criminal Procedure. Upon request, an oral hearing will be assigned by the Assignment Clerk.

5. Discovery. All timely filed motions for discovery shall be completed and furnished to the requesting party no later than 24 hours before the first pretrial or trial date. Discovery motions must be pursuant to Criminal Rule 16(E) which provides that a motion for discovery is to be made no later than: Defendant: 21 days after initial hearing or 7 days before trial, whichever is earlier. Prosecutor: 7 days after defendant obtains discovery or 3 days before trial, whichever is earlier.

6. Pretrial. After arraignment, all first and second degree misdemeanors shall be set for pretrial by the Assignment Clerk within 30 days unless time limits have been waived. All other misdemeanors shall be set for trial unless the Court orders a pretrial in said case, or a time waiver is timely filed. Pretrials shall be conducted in accordance with Criminal Rule 17.1 and a memorandum of the matters agreed upon should be filed in said case. Attorneys shall be prepared to knowledgeably discuss potential issues for settlement, affirmative defenses, and any questionable evidence or legal issues as to the admissibility of evidence. Any attorney who fails to appear for pretrial without just cause being shown may be punished for contempt of court. All defendants must be present for all pretrials. Any defendant who fails to appear without prior court approval will subject him/herself to the potential forfeiture of any posted bond and or the issuance of a bench warrant for his/her arrest.

7. Bench Trials. Other than for minor misdemeanor offenses and for those offenses wherein a timely jury demand has been made, a case which is not resolved after two (2) pretrials shall normally be set for a bench trial. Such trial may also be requested after the first pretrial if it appears that no resolution can be obtained with the pretrial process. No pretrial shall be scheduled for minor misdemeanor offenses and a bench trial will scheduled within the 30 day time limit whenever possible.

8. Jury Trials. If a jury demand is timely filed, one pretrial will be scheduled and held prior to the scheduling of any jury. If the matters are not resolved at this pretrial and unless otherwise instructed a jury trial should then be scheduled by the Assignment Clerk. All attorneys shall notify the Court by 2:00 P.M. of the day preceding the jury trial of any change of plea, otherwise, the costs of calling a jury will be assessed to the party who failed to timely notify the Court.

9. Sentencing. Formal sentencing shall commence within 14 days of trial date. If a presentence investigation has been ordered by the Court, sentencing will be set within 14 days of the receipt of the presentence report.

10. Judgment Entry. Whenever counsel has agreed to prepare the judgment entry, the following shall apply:

1. A fully prepared, signed and/or approved entry shall be submitted for the Court's signature no later no than 14 days after the case resolution date.

2. If (1) does not occur and it is feasible, the Court will then prepare the entry.

3. If (1) does not occur and (2) is not feasible, then the Assignment Clerk shall schedule a formal sentencing hearing as expeditiously as is possible.

Pleadings and other papers may be filed with the Clerk of Courts by facsimile transmission to 740-922-7020 subject to the following conditions:

A. Applicability. These rules apply to civil, criminal, and small claims proceedings in this Court. The following documents will not be accepted for fax filing: any document that requires a filling fee or payment of a fee. Unacceptable documents include but are not limited to original complaints and subpoenas that require a fee.

B. Original Filing. A document filed by fax shall be accepted as the effective original filing. The person making a fax filing need not file any source document with the Clerk of Court but must, however, maintain in his/her records and had have available for production on request by the Court the source document filed by fax, with original signatures as otherwise required under the applicable rules, together with the source copy of the facsimile cover sheet used for the subject filing. The source document filed by fax shall be maintained by the person making the filing until the case is closed and all opportunities for post judgment relief are exhausted.

C. Definitions. As used in these rules, unless the context requires otherwise: A “facsimile transmission” means the transmission of a source document by a facsimile machine that encodes a document into optical or electrical signals, transmits and reconstructs the signals to print a duplicate of the source document at the receiving end; A “facsimile machine” means a machine that can send and receive a facsimile transmission; “Fax” is an abbreviation for “facsimile” and refers, as indicated by the context to facsimile transmission or to a document so transmitted.

D. Cover Page. The person filing a document by fax shall also provide therewith a cover page containing the following information: the name of the court; the title of the case; the case number; the assigned judge; the title of the document being filed; the date of transmission; the transmitting fax number; an indication of the number of pages included in the transmission, including the cover page; if a judge or case number has not been assigned, state that fact on the cover page; the name, address, telephone number, fax number, Supreme Court attorney registration number, if applicable, and the email address of the person filing the fax document , if available.

If a document if sent by fax to the Clerk of Court without the cover page information listed above, the Clerk may, at her/his discretion: enter the document in the Case Docket and file the document; or deposit the document in a file of failed faxed documents with a notation of the reason for the failure, in this instance, the document shall not be considered filed with the Clerk of Courts.

The Court of Clerk is not required to send any form of notice to the sending party of a failed fax filing. However, if practicable, the Clerk of Court may inform the sending party of a failed fax filing.

E. Signature. A party who wishes to file a signed source document by fax shall either fax a copy of the signed source document or fax a copy of the document without the signature but with the notation “/s/” followed by the name of the signing person where the signature appears in the signed source document. A party who files a signed document by fax represents that the physically signed source document is in his/her possession or control.

G. Exhibits. Each exhibit to a facsimile produced document that cannot be accurately transmitted via facsimile transmission for any reason must be replaced by an insert page describing the exhibit and why it is missing. Unless the Court otherwise orders, the missing exhibit shall be filed with the Court, as a separate document, not later than five (5) days following the filing of the facsimile document. Failure to file the missing exhibits as required by this paragraph may result in the Court striking the document and/or exhibit. Any exhibit filed in this manner shall be attached to a cover sheet containing the caption of the case which sets forth the name of the court, title of the case, the case number, name of the judge and the title of the exhibit being filed, and shall be signed and served in conformance with the rules governing the signing and service of pleadings in this Court.

H. Time of Filing. Subject to the provisions of these rules, all documents sent by fax and accepted by the Clerk shall be considered filed with the Clerk of Courts as of the date and time the Clerk time-stamps the document received, as opposed to the date and time of the fax transmission. The Office of the Clerk of Courts will be deemed open to receive facsimile transmissions of documents on the same days and at the same time the Court is regularly open for business. Fax filings may only be transmitted directly through the facsimile machine operated by the Clerk of Court. The Clerk of Court may, but is not required to, acknowledge receipt of a facsimile transmission. The risks of transmitting a document by fax to the Clerk of Courts shall be borne entirely by the sending party. Anyone using facsimile filing is urged to verify receipt of such filing by the Clerk of Court through whatever technological means which are available.

J. Length of Document. Facsimile filings shall not exceed ten (10) pages in length. The filer shall not transmit service copies by facsimile.

Pursuant to Ohio Revised Code Section 1907.24(B)(1), the Court determines for the efficient operation of the Court, that an additional fee of $25.00 shall be imposed as follows:

1. After a Declaration of Forfeiture (Ohio Revised Code Section 2937.221), when the Court forwards information to the Registrar, Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles;

2. After an arrest warrant has issued and the Court forwards a warrant block to the Registrar, Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles (Ohio Revised Code Sections 4503.13 and 4507.091).

These additional fees shall be effective upon the filing of this Rule, Further, it is appropriate for said fees to be deposited by the Clerk in the Court Special Project Fund (S67). The Court finds that there is an immediate need for said Rule,and it is adopted without prior notice or opportunity to comment.

By Local Rule, the Court adopts the Ohio Trial Court Jury Use and Management Standards adopted by the Ohio Supreme Court on August 16, 1993 to ensure the efficient and effective use and management of jury resources. The Court modifies said Standards in the following manner.

Due to the size and population of the territorial jurisdiction of the Tuscarawas County Court and the limited number of actual scheduled jury trials, it is appropriate for persons to be available for service over a longer period of time. Persons will be asked to be available for jury service for a three month period. However, prospective jurors shall be summoned on a rotating basis if and when a jury date is actually set.

This modification shall be read in conjunction with said Standards and should not be interpreted to be inconsistent with any Rules promulgated by the Supreme Court of Ohio.

The Court finds there is an immediate need for said Rule and it is adopted without prior notice or opportunity to comment.

The Court determines that, for the efficient operation of the Court, additional funds are necessary to acquire and pay for special projects of the Court including, but not limited to the acquisition of additional facilities, the acquistion of equipment, the hiring and training of staff, the employment of magistrates and other related services.

Therefore, pursuant to Ohio Revised Code Section 1907.24, the Court shall charge a fee of $20.00, in addition to all other court cost on the filing of each criminal cause, civil action or proceeding or judgment by confession. "Criminal cause" or "civil action or proceeding" shall have the same meaning as defined in Section 1907.24(A)(1) and (B)(1) respectively.

DISCOVERY. To most wisely use the Court's allotted pretrial time and to enable all parties to be prepared to discuss potential resolutions of all cases set for pretrial, it is ordered that all entities prosecuting cases in this Court shall provide discovery to defense attorneys as oftern as practicable at least seven days prior to the first date assigned for pretrial in the cause.

CLIENTS. All attorneys representing defendants in this Court shall whenever possible consult with their clients and review discovery presented to them. Every effort must be made to review said discovery with Defendants prior to pretrial.

VIDEO TAPES. All agencies which have video cameras in their police vehicles must provide a copy of said video tape to the Defendant upon Defendant's request and the Defendant providing a blank tape for copy onto. In the case of any agency whose tapes are non copiable the tapes shall be made available for review by the Defense Attorney and his/her client in as private a setting as possible.

DRIVING RECORD. The arresting law enforcement agency shall be repsonsible for providing the Court a LEADS or other official record of each traffic offender's traffic record prior to the offender's initial appearance in Court.

The Court finds that the use of a Financial Transaction Device including a credit card or debit card as a method of payment is necessary to facilitate the expeditious disposition of cases and to conform to the Criminal Rules as follows:

1. Pursuant to Ohio Rule of Criminal Procedure 46 and Ohio Traffic Rule 19, for the payment of bail;

2. Pursuant to Ohio Rule of Criminal Procedure 4.1 and Ohio Traffic Rule 13 for payments through the Violations Bureau of the Court:

3. Pursuant to Ohio Revised Code Section 2929.28 for the collection of financail sanctions including fines, costs, and fees in criminal and traffic cases.

Further, the Court finds that there is an immediate need for said Rule, and it is adopted without prior notice or opportunity for comment. The Court orders as follows:

1. That a five dollar and no cent ($5.00) nonrefundable convenience fee per transaction for telephone and online transactions is just and reasonable;

2. The Clerk shall accept payment on the above listed items effective on the adoption of this Rule;

3. That it is appropriate for monies from this convenience fee to be deposited by the Clerk in the Special Project Fund of this Court;

4. That if payment by use of a Financial Transaction Device is returned or dishonored for any reason, the person making said payment shall be liable to the Court for payment of a penalty over and above the amount due;

5. That no person using a Financial Transaction Device for payment to the Court shall be released from liability for the obligation until the Court receives final payment by the Financial Transaction Device Issuer or other guarantor of payment in the transaction;

6. That payment by use of a Financial Transaction Device may be made in person at the Court, by telephone, or when available by payment online at www.tusccourtsouthern.com.

The use and filing of a ticket/citation that is produced by computer or other electronic means, which conform to the requirements of Ohio Traffic Rule 3 as amended and adopted July 1, 2014, is hereby authorized in the Tuscarawas County Court.

The electronically produced ticket shall conform in all substantive respects to the Ohio Uniform Traffic Ticket. If an electronically produced ticket is issued at the scene of an alleged offense, the issuing officer shall provide the Defendant with a paper copy of the ticket.