Chambers staff is happy to answer questions about chambers procedures. HOWEVER, please consult the Electronic Filing Policies and Procedures, the Local Rules, the case docket (if applicable) and the information on this website before contacting Chambers with a question.

The Judge prefers that papers submitted electronically to chambers be in the current version of Word.

Local Rules are enforced - please pay particular attention to L.R.7.1, and Electronic Filing Rules 5 and 9(d).

Stipulations should be e-filed through the CM/ECF system. However, proposed Orders regarding those Stipulations should be directed to Chambers via the link located under the Utilities section in CM/ECF. Please consult Rule 12 of the ECF Policies and Procedures for additional information regarding Proposed Orders. Stipulations combined with orders are discouraged.

The short statements (pleading format, double spaced) required by the Notice of the Case Management and Scheduling Conference should be e-mailed to Chambers at susan_pinkowski@mied.uscourts.gov. They are not to be e-filed.

The Court encourages the use of modern technology to display exhibits and demonstrative aides during trial. However, prior arrangements must be made with Chambers staff. Requests for interpreters and accommodations for witnesses with disabilities should be made with Chambers at least one week before needed.

If a case is settled, the parties must notify Chambers in writing via email or telefax by the next business day.

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All removed cases are reviewed. A standing order for removal is issued in many cases, to which the removing party must respond within  seven (7) days. If jurisdiction is questionable, an order to show cause will be issued. Motions to remand must be filed within 30 days of removal.

Judge Lawson accepts no ex parte communications. Counsel may contact the Case Manager or the judge's Judicial Assistant with respect to procedural and scheduling matters only. Questions about pending cases should be directed to the Case Manager. Contact by counsel or parties with the law clerks is discouraged.

The parties are encouraged to conduct their Rule 26(f) discovery conference before the case management and scheduling conference established by the Court. The disclosure requirements of Rule 26(a)(1) generally will be required by the Court 14 days after the case management and scheduling conference. Dates for disclosure of expert information contemplated by Rule 26(a)(2) generally will be established at the case management and scheduling conference. The parties are encouraged to summarize discovery disputes and email a joint letter to the Court, schedule a telephone conference, and discuss the issue before filing discovery motions. Discovery motions generally are referred to the magistrate judge for disposition. Once a motion has been referred, all communication regarding that motion should be directed to the magistrate judge's chambers.

When applying for an internship, please submit your cover letter, resume, transcript, and writing sample via U.S. mail or email to chambers at Susan_Pinkowski@mied.uscourts.gov.

Applications should be submitted to chambers at least two months before the anticipated start date.

Discovery motions may be referred to the magistrate judge. Once a motion has been referred, all communication regarding that motion should be directed to the magistrate judge's chambers.

The Court strictly enforces the requirements of Eastern District of Michigan Local Rule 5.1 and Local Rule 7.1 and the Electronic Filing Policies and Procedures for all motions. Failure to follow these rules likely will result in a denial of the motion and may lead to sanctions.

The Court requires strict compliance with LR 7.1(a), which requires moving parties to seek concurrence before filing a motion. The Court requires that a good-faith effort be made to obtain concurrence, which normally involves actual voice contact with opposing counsel. If no actual conversation occurs, the moving party must show that reasonable efforts were undertaken to conduct a conference and specifically describe those efforts in the motion papers. The outcome of the conference must be stated. All of this must be documented specifically in the motion papers. Failure to comply with LR 7.1 (a) usually results in dismissal of the motion.

Motions must be clear and succinct without extensive factual development. All briefs must comply with Eastern District of Michigan Local Rule 5.1 and Local Rule 7.1, and must contain citation of appropriate authorities within the text of the brief (not in footnotes), and citations must conform to the latest edition of The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation published by the Harvard Law Review. In addition, briefs must contain a concise statement of facts supported by references to the record. References to the record must conform to Rule 6 of the Electronic Filing Policies and Procedures. Footnotes are discouraged, but if they are utilized they must be printed in the same font size as the text, which may be no smaller than 10-1/2 characters per inch (non-proportional) or 14 point (proportional).

Answers to motions and supporting briefs must be filed according to the schedule set forth in Local Rule 7.1(d). Note that Rule R5(e) of the Electronic Filing Policies and Procedures prohibits combining an answer to a motion with a counter-motion in the same filing. The Court normally does not issue a briefing schedule for motions. The Court enforces the response and reply due dates as set forth in LR 7.1(d) and Fed. R. Civ. P.6, even when the motion hearing is set far in advance. Attorneys who do not respond to motions in a timely fashion are not permitted to argue before the Court during oral argument, if oral argument is scheduled.

Counsel are discouraged from employing elaborate boilerplate recitations of the applicable motion standards and lengthy string citations in support of well-established legal principles. Instead, counsel should focus their analysis on a few well-chosen cases, preferably recent, published, and from controlling courts. When citing unpublished sources, Westlaw references are preferred.

Facts stated in the statement of facts must be supported with citations of either the pleadings, interrogatories, admissions, depositions, affidavits, or documentary exhibits. Exhibits not previously filed should be included with an appendix. The appendix must contain an index. As to cited deposition testimony, counsel are also encouraged to supply the Court with a transcript of cited page(s) together with sufficient accompanying pages to provide context. All citations must have page references. Other documents referred to in the briefs should be included in the appendix. Counsel may highlight their submissions.

When filing a paper in a criminal case through CM/ECF, select ONLY your individual client. Do NOT select all defendants.

Courtesy copies of motions and briefs for motions listed in LR 7.1 (e)(2)(A) must be provided to Chambers. Parties may submit courtesy copies of other motions, exhibits, responses and replies to Chambers. All papers must be firmly bound along the left margin (by binding or in a 3-ring binder) and any exhibits must be properly tabbed.

If a hearing is scheduled, the Court's Case Manager will docket a notice of the hearing date.

The Court endeavors to decide pending motions promptly, ordinarily within six weeks after a hearing, or within three weeks after the time for a response has passed without a response being filed. Complex motions or those raising novel issues may require additional time to conclude. If a motion has been pending in chambers without resolution for an apparently inordinate time, counsel are asked to notify the Court's Case Manager by telephone or in writing (jointly if possible) as to the status of the motion. Such notification is a service that is appreciated by the Court and is not viewed by the Court as inappropriate or impertinent.

If a party intends to call witnesses at a motion hearing, the party must notify Chambers at least two weeks in advance of the hearing date and inform the Case Manager of the anticipated length of time needed for the testimony.

Local Rule 5.3 sets forth in detail the procedure that must be followed before any item may be filed on the docket under seal.

Before docketing any paper under seal, whether it is a motion, an exhibit, or any other item, you must file a motion requesting the Court's permission to file the item under seal. Also, as with any motion, before filing a motion to seal you must seek concurrence from counsel for all other parties, unless the applicable rules of court allow you to seek relief ex parte. Local Rules 5.3 and 7.1 apply in the usual manner to all motions seeking leave for filing items under seal.

If you are seeking to file papers such as certain exhibits with medical or other personal information under seal, but the motion for leave to file under seal does not itself disclose any information that needs to be maintained under seal, then you may e-file the motion for leave (NOT under seal), with the items that you want to have sealed as separately docketed exhibits (under seal), according to the procedure outlined in Local Rule 5.3. Again, keep in mind that you also must comply in the usual way with all other applicable rules of court, such as Local Rule 7.1.

If the motion to seal itself contains information that you believe should be sealed, or if you need to file information under seal that by its nature should not be revealed to opposing counsel (e.g., motions to authorize fees or services in a criminal matter), then you should email the case manager (not docket) the motion or other papers that you want filed under seal, and a motion for leave to file all of the items under seal, each as separate files in Microsoft Word format, using the Utilities function of CM-ECF, which goes directly to the case manager. In this case you SHOULD NOT e-file any of the items in any form, either sealed or unsealed, before sending them via Utilities. The items will be docketed appropriately by the case manager.

In either case, when a motion to seal is docketed or received via Utilities, then the Court will consider whether it should be granted and issue an appropriate order. If you believe that the order granting the motion also should be sealed, then your motion to seal should so state.

Note that in the usual case the Court will not grant requests to seal an entire motion and brief or all associated exhibits where only limited portions of certain exhibits contain sensitive information. The Court also will not grant “sealed motions to seal” where the motion for leave to file under seal does not itself disclose sensitive information or information that should not be divulged to other parties or their counsel. Orders granting motions to seal also typically will not be filed under seal unless docketing the order on the public docket would defeat the purpose of the confidential filing.

Stipulations should be docketed and a proposed order sent through the Utilities function of CM-ECF.

If either party is pro se, and that party is not an efiler, then the pro se's original wet signature must be on the stipulation.

In order to view and print the order(s), Adobe Acrobat Reader is required. To download Adobe Acrobat click here.

If you would like daily copy or real-time services at trial, you must seek permission from the Court before or during your Final Pretrial Conference. Once permission is obtained, you should contact Judge Lawson's court reporter immediately at rene_twedt@mied.uscourts.gov or 313-234-2660, to make payment arrangements.

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Trials are conducted on Monday through Friday. Jury trials generally will begin on Tuesday. Counsel are expected to be present in court in advance of the start time on trial days. Subject to the Court's availability, after the first trial day trials normally commence at 8:00 a.m. and continue through approximately 2:00 p.m., with two 15- minute breaks. Occasionally, trial days may also consist of 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:45 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. sessions. The Court establishes the schedule for trials at the commencement of each trial week.

Side bar conferences may be conducted during trial, but counsel are encouraged to keep them to a minimum. An exhibit book should be delivered to the Court one day before the commencement of trial. Normal and typical customs relating to courtroom decorum apply. For example, counsel should stand when addressing the Court; witness interrogation should be conducted from the lectern; counsel should seek permission from the Court to approach a witness or the bench; witnesses and parties should be addressed by their surname and an appropriate honorific. Chewing gum is prohibited.

All of the provisions of Fed. R. Civ. P. 65 are enforced. The Court rarely grants a temporary restraining order without notice to the opposite party absent a true emergency, such as where the facts alleged establish that giving notice will precipitate the harm that the TRO seeks to prevent. Parties are encouraged to notify the case manager by telephone upon filing a motion for an injunction so that appropriate scheduling issues can be discussed.