RULE 91. STUPULATIONS FOR TRIAL
- (a) Stipulations Required:
- (1) General: The parties are required to stipulate, to the
fullest extent to which complete or qualified agreement can or
fairly should be reached, all matters not privileged which are
relevant to the pending case, regardless of whether such matters
involve fact or opinion or the application of law to fact. Included
in matters required to be stipulated are all facts, all documents
and papers or contents or aspects thereof, and all evidence which
fairly should not be in dispute. Where the truth or authenticity of
facts or evidence claimed to be relevant by one party is not
disputed, an objection on the ground of materiality or relevance
may be noted by any other party but is not to be regarded as just
cause for refusal to stipulate. The requirement of stipulation
applies under this Rule without regard to where the burden of proof
may lie with respect to the matters involved. Documents or papers
or other exhibits annexed to or filed with the stipulation shall be
considered to be part of the stipulation.
- (2) Stipulations To Be Comprehensive: The fact that any matter
may have been obtained through discovery or requests for admission
or through any other authorized procedure is not grounds for
omitting such matter from the stipulation. Such other procedures
should be regarded as aids to stipulation, and matter obtained
through them which is within the scope of subparagraph (1), must be
set forth comprehensively in the stipulation, in logical order in
the context of all other provisions of the stipulation.
- (b) Form: Stipulations required under this Rule shall be in
writing, signed by the parties thereto or by their counsel, and
shall observe the requirements of Rule
23 as to form and style of papers, except that the stipulation
shall be filed with the Court in duplicate and only one set of
exhibits shall be required. Documents or other papers, which are
the subject of stipulation in any respect and which the parties
intend to place before the Court, shall be annexed to or filed with
the stipulation. The stipulation shall be clear and concise.
Separate items shall be stated in separate paragraphs, and shall be
appropriately lettered or numbered. Exhibits attached to a
stipulation shall be numbered serially, i.e., 1, 2, 3, etc. The
exhibit number shall be followed by "P" if offered by the
petitioner, e.g., 1-P; "R" if offered by the respondent, e.g., 2-R;
or "J" if joint, e.g., 3-J.
- (c) Filing: Executed stipulations prepared pursuant to this
Rule, and related exhibits, shall be filed by the parties at or
before commencement of the trial of the case, unless the Court in
the particular case shall otherwise specify. A stipulation when
filed need not be offered formally to be considered in evidence.
- (d) Objections: Any objection to all or any part of a
stipulation should be noted in the stipulation, but the Court will
consider any objection to a stipulated matter made at the
commencement of the trial or for good cause shown made during the
trial.
- (e) Binding Effect: A stipulation shall be treated, to the
extent of its terms, as a conclusive admission by the parties to
the stipulation, unless otherwise permitted by the Court or agreed
upon by those parties. The Court will not permit a party to a
stipulation to qualify, change, or contradict a stipulation in
whole or in part, except that it may do so where justice requires.
A stipulation and the admissions therein shall be binding and have
effect only in the pending case and not for any other purpose, and
cannot be used against any of the parties thereto in any other case
or proceeding.
- (f) Noncompliance by a Party:
- (1) Motion to Compel Stipulation: If, after the date of
issuance of trial notice in a case, a party has refused or failed
to confer with an adversary with respect to entering into a
stipulation in accordance with this Rule, or a party has refused or
failed to make such a stipulation of any matter within the terms of
this Rule, the party proposing to stipulate may, at a time not
later than 45 days prior to the date set for call of the case from
a trial calendar, file a motion with the Court for an order
directing the delinquent party to show cause why the matters
covered in the motion should not be deemed admitted for the
purposes of the case. The motion shall (A) show with particularity
and by separately numbered paragraphs each matter which is claimed
for stipulation; (B) set forth in express language the specific
stipulation which the moving party proposes with respect to each
such matter and annex thereto or make available to the Court and
the other parties each document or other paper as to which the
moving party desires a stipulation; (C) set forth the sources,
reasons, and basis for claiming, with respect to each such matter,
that it should be stipulated; (D) show that opposing counsel or the
other parties have had reasonable access to those sources or basis
for stipulation and have been informed of the reasons for
stipulation; and (E) show proof of service of a copy of the motion
on opposing counsel or the other parties.
- (2) Procedure: Upon the filing of such a motion, an order to
show cause as moved shall be issued forthwith, unless the Court
shall direct otherwise. The order to show cause will be served by
the Clerk of the Court, with a copy thereof sent to the moving
party. Within 20 days of the service of the order to show cause,
the party to whom the order is directed shall file a response with
the Court, with proof of service of a copy thereof on opposing
counsel or the other parties, showing why the matters set forth in
the motion papers should not be deemed admitted for purposes of the
pending case. The response shall list each matter involved on which
there is no dispute, referring specifically to the numbered
paragraphs in the motion to which the admissions relate. Where a
matter is disputed only in part, the response shall show the part
admitted and the part disputed. Where the responding party is
willing to stipulate in whole or in part with respect to any matter
in the motion by varying or qualifying a matter in the proposed
stipulation, the response shall set forth the variance or
qualification and the admission which the responding party is
willing to make. Where the response claims that there is a dispute
as to any matter in part or in whole, or where the response
presents a variance or qualification with respect to any matter in
the motion, the response shall show the sources, reasons, and basis
on which the responding party relies for that purpose. The Court,
where it is found appropriate, may set the order to show cause for
a hearing or conference at such time as the Court shall
determine.
- (3) Failure of Response: If no response is filed within the
period specified with respect to any matter or portion thereof, or
if the response is evasive or not fairly directed to the proposed
stipulation or portion thereof, that matter or portion thereof will
be deemed stipulated for purposes of the pending case, and an order
will be issued accordingly.
- (4) Matters Considered: Opposing claims of evidence will not be
weighed under this Rule unless such evidence is patently
incredible. Nor will a genuinely controverted or doubtful issue of
fact be determined in advance of trial. The Court will determine
whether a genuine dispute exists, or whether in the interests of
justice a matter ought not be deemed stipulated.
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