The Court schedules a status conference within one month after the answer is filed in complex cases such as patent, anti-trust, civil rights, and securities fraud cases, but not in personal injury cases. Discovery cutoff, motion cutoff and pretrial dates are set at the status conference. The Court may hold additional status conferences if the case presents management problems. The Court allows counsel to conduct status conferences by phone if they request the Court to do so in advance. The Court will hold a Fed.R.Civ.P. 26(f) discovery conference upon the informal request of either party or if the Court decides such a conference is necessary and may eliminate discovery disputes.