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2025/06/09 |
PAPERLESS ORDER REGARDING PROCEDURES IN SCHEDULE "A" CAUSES OF ACTION SERVICE: Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m) requires service of summons and complaint to be perfected upon Defendants within 90 days after the filing of the complaint. Unless service is waived, proof of service must be made to the Court by filing the server's affidavit. If a Defendant waives service, notice of the same shall be filed immediately. Failure to file proof of service or show good cause within 90 days will result in a dismissal without prejudice and without further notice. Any motion for alternate service upon Defendants must state what methods Plaintiff has undertaken to effectuate service. A motion for alternate service will not be granted where a plaintiff does not provide evidence or affidavits to show what efforts Plaintiff has undertaken to determine whether the addresses it has on file for each Defendant are actually associated with each Defendant. See, e.g., Zuru (Singapore) Pte., Ltd. v. Individuals Identified on Schedule A Hereto, No. 22-2483, 2022 WL 14872617, at *2 (S.D.N.Y. Oct. 26, 2022) (finding alternative process under Rule 4(f)(3) proper where plaintiff "conducted further online research, sent mail to the addresses, and conducted in-person visits" to determine whether physical addresses provided by Amazon were accurate). Further, any motion for alternate service effectuated upon a foreign defendant pursuant to Rule 4(f)(3) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure must detail: (1) the proposed method of service for each Defendant; (2) the domicile of each Defendant; (3) what reasonable efforts were undertaken to discover each Defendant's domicile; and (4) whether the form of alternate service requested is permitted by the Hague Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents given each Defendant's domicile. MOTIONS FOR TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER: Any motion for entry of temporary restraining order or for entry of preliminary injunction must include a verified certification from counsel detailing steps Plaintiff has taken to verify that this Court has personal jurisdiction over each Defendant. See Meier ex rel. Meier v. Sun Int'l Hotels, Ltd., 288 F.3d 1264, 1268-69 (11th Cir. 2002) ("The plaintiff has the burden of establishing a prima facie case of personal jurisdiction over a nonresident defendant."). Plaintiff must sufficiently allege this Court's jurisdiction over each Defendant pursuant to Florida Statutes § 48.193(1)(a)(1)-(2) and § 48.193(1)(a)(6), or, in the alternative, Rule 4(k) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Any motion for entry of temporary restraining order or for entry of preliminary injunction must include or incorporate allegations that show: "(1) a substantial likelihood of success on the merits; (2) that irreparable injury will be suffered if the relief is not granted; (3) that the threatened injury outweighs the harm the relief would inflict on the non-movant; and (4) that the entry of the relief would serve the public interest," and establish entitlement to relief with regard to each Defendant. Schiavo ex. rel Schindler v. Schiavo, 403 F.3d 1223, 1225-26 (11th Cir. 2005); see also Levi Strauss & Co. v. Sunrise Int'l. Trading Inc., 51 F.3d 982, 985 (11th Cir. 1995). Additionally, if a motion requests entry of a temporary restraining order without notice to the adverse party or parties, the motion must also plead "specific facts in an affidavit or a verified complaint" that "clearly show that immediate and irreparable injury, loss, or damage will result to the movant before the adverse party can be heard in opposition," and the movant's attorney must certify "in writing any efforts made to give notice and the reasons why it should not be required." Fed. R. Civ. P. 65(b)(1). CERTIFICATION REGARDING PRIOR SUITS: Within FIVE (5) days of the date of this Order, counsel for Plaintiff shall file a verified response to this Order, which must include whether counsel has conducted a search of case filings in the records of the Clerk of the United States District Court for all districts to ascertain whether Defendants have ever been sued prior to the filing of this suit for any alleged violations of Plaintiff's intellectual property rights. If counsel did not conduct such a search prior to the filing of this lawsuit, counsel shall conduct that search prior to responding to this Order and indicate the results of that search in a verified response. If there has been a prior suit, counsel shall include in the verified response information about the present status of that litigation, if it is pending, and, if not pending, the nature of the disposition (e.g., settlement, dismissal, or other disposition), and a summary as to how the rights at issue in the instant suit differ from those in the previously filed suits. FILING UNDER SEAL AND/OR TO PROCEED ANONYMOUSLY: Motions to file documents under seal or to proceed anonymously or pseudonymously in these cases are disfavored by the Court. See Landmark Commc'ns, Inc. v. Virginia, 435 U.S. 829, 839 (1978) ("The operations of the courts and the judicial conduct of judges are matters of utmost public concern."); Chicago Trib. Co. v. Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc., 263 F.3d 1304, 1311 (11th Cir. 2001) ("The common-law right of access to judicial proceedings, an essential component of our system of justice, is instrumental in securing the integrity of the process."); Doe v. Frank, 951 F.2d 320, 323 (11th Cir. 1992) ("It is the exceptional case in which a plaintiff may proceed under a fictitious name."). Accordingly, any such motions shall be denied with leave to refile only after all the requirements of this Order have been complied with and only once the exceptional circumstances required to grant such a motion have been shown. CERTIFICATE OF INTERESTED PARTIES: Within fifteen days from the date the last Defendant enters an appearance in this action, the parties, including governmental parties, must file Certificates of Interested Parties and Corporate Disclosure Statements that contain a complete list of persons, associated persons, firms, partnerships, or corporations that have a financial interest in the outcome of this case, including subsidiaries, conglomerates, affiliates, parent corporations, and other identifiable legal entities related to a party. The parties must not include the undersigned or the assigned Magistrate Judge as interested parties unless they have an interest in the litigation. Throughout the pendency of the action, the parties are under a continuing obligation to amend, correct, and update the Certificates. JOINT SCHEDULING REPORTS: Within twenty days from the date the last Defendant enters an appearance in this action, the parties are directed to prepare and file a Joint Scheduling Report as required by Local Rule 16.1. Disclosures required under Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(l) must be made at or before the time the parties confer to develop their case management and discovery plan. The parties must certify in the Joint Scheduling Report that such disclosures have been made unless a party files an objection to a required disclosure. Such filed objection must include a full explanation of the basis for the objection. The scheduling conference may be held via video conference or in person. It may not be held by telephone. In drafting their Joint Proposed Scheduling Order, the parties shall utilize the Court's Template Scheduling Order, found at https://www.flsd.uscourts.gov/sites/flsd/files/TemplateSchedulingOrder.pdf. Any deviation from the guidelines set forth in the Court's Template Scheduling Order or those proposed by the Local Rules must be noted in the Joint Scheduling Report along with an explanation for why any deviation is being proposed. Failure to articulate the reason(s) for any deviation from the guidelines set forth in the Court's Template Scheduling Order may result in the Court setting pre-trial deadlines and/or a trial date without regard to those proposed by the parties. FILING OF MOTIONS: All filings must be in a 12-point font and double spaced. Single spacing is only permitted for footnotes. The required conferral under Local Rule 7.1 must be by telephone or in person. An e-mail conferral will only be permitted if counsel are in agreement as to the relief sought in the motion. EXTENSIONS OF TIME: Requests for extensions of time, including unopposed motions, will only be granted by the Court upon an appropriate motion showing good cause why the deadline cannot be met. Absent an emergency, motions for extensions of time must be filed no later than three business days prior to the deadline from which relief is being sought. All requests for extensions of time must include: (1) the conferral statement required under Local Rule 7.1; (2) a list of any prior motions for extension of time; (3) a specific statement regarding the circumstances necessitating the requested relief; and (4) a statement as to whether the request impacts the deadline to file a dispositive motion or trial date. DEFAULTS: In the event a served Defendant does not appear in this action, the Plaintiff(s) shall file a Motion for Clerk's Default within seven days of the deadline for the Defendant to answer. Extensions of time to answer a pleading must take the form of a motion to the Court. Motions for Final Default Judgment, if applicable, shall be filed within seven days of the entry of a Clerk's Default. Any motions for default final judgment must comply with the Court's Standing Procedures Regarding Motions for Default Final Judgment found at: https://www.flsd.uscourts.gov/sites/flsd/files/JudgeBecerraStandingOrderMotionsforDefaultJudgment.pdf. Signed by Judge Jacqueline Becerra on 6/9/2025. (rs01)
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