Hon. Joseph A. Marutollo — Individual Rules of Practice

INDIVIDUAL PRACTICES AND RULES OF

MAGISTRATE JUDGE JOSEPH A. MARUTOLLO

United States District Court

Eastern District of New York

Theodore Roosevelt United States Courthouse

225 Cadman Plaza East

Brooklyn, New York 11201

Courtroom: 11A South / Chambers: 1217 South

Email: Marutollo_Chambers@nyed.uscourts.gov

Courtroom Deputy: Esther Glasgow

Updated October 5, 2026

Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, matters before Judge Marutollo will be conducted

pursuant to the following practices and rules.

I. CONSENTING TO MAGISTRATE JUDGE JURISDICTION

Pursuant to Administrative Orders No. 2025-14, the Eastern District of New York Board of

Judges has established and extended a Direct Assignment Program concerning the assignment of civil

cases to Magistrate Judges. Should the parties consent to the jurisdiction of Judge Marutollo, the

parties shall promptly file the Notice of Option to Consent to Magistrate Judge Jurisdiction.

II. COMMUNICATIONS WITH CHAMBERS

A. Written Communications

Except as provided below, communications with Chambers shall be by letter electronically

filed with the Court, with copies simultaneously delivered or mailed to any pro se litigant. Counsel

must provide a brief description of the subject matter of the letter in the ECF entry field (e.g., “Joint

Letter in connection with Initial Status Conference”) not simply, “Letter.” No hard copies of letters

shall be delivered to Chambers or to the Court. As set forth in Section V below, any requests for an

extension of time must be uploaded to ECF using the “motion” event type.

Telephone calls to Chambers are not permitted. For emergencies or inquiries, please contact

Chambers via email, at Marutollo_Chambers@nyed.uscourts.gov.

III. SETTLEMENT CONFERENCES

At least fourteen (14) days prior to the Settlement Conference, Plaintiff shall submit a

settlement demand to Defendant with a brief explanation of why such a settlement is appropriate. No

later than seven (7) days prior to the settlement conference, Defendant shall submit an offer to Plaintiff

with a brief explanation of why such a settlement is appropriate.

Individual Practices and Rules of Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Marutollo

The parties shall submit ex parte settlement letters to Chambers by email

(Marutollo_Chambers@nyed.uscourts.gov) by a deadline set by the Court in each case. The ex parte

settlement letters should include the following: (a) the communicated demand or offer as prescribed

above, as well as the current status of settlement discussions, including the most recent demand and

offer made, if different from the above; (b) the strengths and weakness of their case; and (c) any legal

arguments in support of their settlement position with citations to relevant authorities. As these ex

parte statements will be treated as confidential and will not be docketed, they should include a realistic

assessment of the party’s settlement position. The ex parte letters shall be limited to five (5) pages,

exclusive of attachments. The subject line of the email to Chambers containing a party’s ex parte

settlement letter shall read: EX PARTE SETTLEMENT LETTER, [PLAINTIFF NAME] V.

[DEFENDANT NAME], [CASE NUMBER].

Parties are required to personally attend the conference even if represented by counsel, and

even if counsel has obtained settlement authority from their client. In the case of a corporate party,

the individual attending the conference should be a corporate employee with full authority to settle

the matter. In the case of a Government or municipal entity requiring the approval of a body, such

as a board, legislature, or agency, the individual attending the conference must be fully authorized to

approve and submit a recommendation to that governing body or to contact, in real time, the person

authorized to make such a recommendation. An insured party shall appear with a representative of

the insurer(s) authorized to negotiate, and who has full authority to settle the matter.

If a party fails to comply with the attendance requirements set forth above, the Court may

order that party to reimburse all other parties for their time and travel expenses and may face other

sanctions as appropriate.

IV. REQUESTS FOR ADJOURNMENTS OR EXTENSIONS OF TIME

All requests for adjournments of a court conference or extensions of time shall be filed on

ECF as a “Motion” (not a “Letter”) at least two (2) business days prior to the scheduled appearance

or deadline. Any adjournment of a court appearance being requested less than two (2) business days

prior to the scheduled appearance or deadline shall be accompanied by an email to Chambers (copying

all counsel) advising the Court of the request. All requests for adjournments or extensions must state:

(i) the original date of the conference or deadline and the proposed new dates; (ii) the reasons for the

adjournment or extension; (iii) the number of previous requests for adjournment or extension, and

whether those requests were granted; (iv) whether the adversary consents, and if not, the reasons

given by the adversary for refusing to consent; and (v) whether the requested adjournment or

extension affects any other scheduled dates. Requests for an adjournment of a court conference must

include at least three proposed dates, on which all counsel and parties, as applicable, are available for

the adjourned proceeding.

Absent a true emergency, parties must meet and confer in good faith prior to requesting

adjournments or extensions. Failure to confer in good faith with an adversary may be grounds for

denial.

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Individual Practices and Rules of Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Marutollo

V. NON-DISPOSITIVE MOTIONS

As a general matter, and unless otherwise directed by the presiding District Judge, all non-

dispositive pre-trial motions, including discovery motions, are to be made to Judge Marutollo.

A. Motions for Admission Pro Hac Vice

A motion for admission pro hac vice, together with a proposed order admitting the attorney

pro hac vice, shall be served and filed electronically at least seven (7) business days prior to the return

date designated in the notice of motion. Although there is no need to file a memorandum of law, this

motion must comply with Local Civil Rule 1.3. These motions will be on submission. If any party

objects to the motion, opposition papers must be served and filed at least two (2) business days prior

to the return date. No reply papers are permitted.

B. Discovery Motions

Parties must certify that they made a good faith effort to resolve disputes before making any

discovery motion, including by conferring by contemporaneous means (e.g., via telephone, video

conference, and/or in person). See Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(a)(1). An exchange of letters or emails alone

does not satisfy this requirement. Failure to include a certification of such efforts consistent with

Rule 37(a)(1) in any discovery motion will result in the denial of the motion. In the event that the

parties are unable to resolve a discovery dispute, the parties must write to the Court and describe their

dispute in a single letter, jointly composed. The joint letter shall be filed on ECF as a “Motion” (not

a “Letter”). The joint letter shall begin with a brief statement of the claims and defenses at issue in

the case. Each party’s portion of the joint submission shall be limited to three (3) pages and must

include citations to relevant case law. In the event that the parties are unable to agree upon a single,

joint letter, the parties may file separate letters, but must demonstrate good cause as to why they were

unable to submit a joint letter. In either the joint or separate letters, the parties shall adhere to the

meet and confer requirements set forth in Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(a)(1) and should describe those efforts

in their submission.

After submission of the joint letter, which constitutes the parties’ request for a pre-motion

conference, the Court may schedule a conference to discuss the dispute. If the dispute cannot be

resolved during the conference, the Court may order the parties to brief a motion to compel or a

motion for a protective order. The parties shall not file any discovery materials on ECF unless the

same is necessary for the joint letter or the Court-ordered discovery motion.

Absent extraordinary circumstances, discovery applications made later than thirty (30) days

prior to the close of discovery will be denied as untimely.

C. Non-Dispositive, Non-Discovery Motions

For non-dispositive, non-discovery pre-trial disputes, the parties must first make good faith

efforts to resolve the disputes prior to seeking the Court’s intervention. Parties are encouraged to

make non-dispositive motions by letter. Parties seeking judicial resolution of such issues should

comply with Local Civil Rule 7.1(d) as applicable. The Court expects parties to exercise judgment

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as to the length of the letter motion. If necessary, after submission of the letter motion, the Court may

advise the moving party to file a formal motion pursuant to Local Civil Rules 6.1 and 7.1.

VI. DISPOSITIVE MOTIONS

Where the parties have consented to Judge Marutollo’s jurisdiction to hear dispositive motions

and/or for all purposes, the following rules apply.

A. Pre-Motion Conferences

1. Pre-motion conferences are not required in Social Security appeals, habeas

cases, or cases in which one or more parties are proceeding pro se. In all other

cases, a party must request a pre-motion conference before filing any

dispositive motion pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12 or 56; any motion for a change

of venue; or a motion to amend a pleading pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 15 when

leave of court is required.1

2. To request a pre-motion conference, the moving party is to file and serve a pre-

motion conference letter, not to exceed three (3) pages, setting forth the basis

for the anticipated motion.2 The letter shall include citations to relevant

authority and should provide a brief overview of the anticipated motion. A

party’s submission of a pre-motion letter seeking leave to file a pre-answer

motion to dismiss will stay that party’s obligation to answer or move against

the complaint through the date of the pre-motion conference.

3. All parties served with the moving party’s pre-motion conference letter are

required to serve and file a letter response within five (5) business days of

service of the moving party’s letter, unless otherwise ordered by the Court.

The response shall not exceed three (3) pages. When a party responds to a pre-

motion conference letter in anticipation of a motion to dismiss, they should

state whether they intend to: file an amended complaint as of right, pursuant to

Fed. R. Civ. P. Rule 15(a)(1)(B); seek leave to amend in light of one or more

alleged pleading defects; or proceed to briefing on the contemplated motion.

Replies are not permitted.

4. In appropriate cases, the Court may construe the pre-motion conference letter,

along with counsel’s arguments at the pre-motion conference, as the motion

itself. The Court may also set a briefing schedule without a pre-motion

1 When filing a pre-motion letter regarding a request to amend a pleading, the moving party shall

attach: (1) the proposed amended pleading and (2) a redlined comparison of the operative pleading and

proposed amended pleading.

2 If the pre-motion conference letter is filed in anticipation of a motion for summary judgment pursuant

to Fed. R. Civ. P. 56, a Local Civil Rule 56.1 Statement does not need to be filed.

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Individual Practices and Rules of Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Marutollo

conference if the Court determines that a pre-motion conference will not be a

useful expenditure of the parties’ time.

5. If any party concludes in good faith that delaying the filing of a motion, in

order to comply with any aspect of these Individual Practices and Rules, will

deprive the party of a substantive right, the party may file the motion within

the time required by the Federal Rules of Civil or Appellate Procedure,

together with an explanation of the basis for that conclusion.

B. Motion Papers

1. In cases where a pre-motion conference is required, the parties shall not file

their motion papers until the motion has been fully briefed. To start the

briefing process, a notice and all supporting papers are to be served on the other

parties along with a cover letter setting forth whom the movant represents and

the papers being served. A copy of the cover letter only – and not the papers

themselves – shall be filed electronically using the “Letter” event on ECF, not

the “Motion” event or “Notice of Motion” event. On the day that the motion

is fully briefed, the moving party shall electronically file all motion papers.

In cases where a pre-motion conference is not required, the parties need not

wait until the motion is fully briefed to electronically file their motion papers.

2. Unless prior permission has been granted, memoranda of law in support of,

and in opposition to, dispositive motions should comply with formatting and

length requirements of Local Civil Rule 7.1(c).

3. All memoranda of law shall be produced in 12-point font, with footnotes in 11-

point font, and shall have one-inch margins on all sides. All memoranda must

be filed in a text-searchable format.

4. Joint stipulations of facts are not required for Social Security cases.

VII. CONFIDENTIALITY ORDERS

For the convenience of the parties, the Court has provided a form Confidentiality Order that

the parties may submit to the Court for approval to protect the confidentiality of information

exchanged in discovery.3 Should the parties endeavor to customize such proposed Confidentiality

Order based on the circumstances of the case, they shall file both clean and redlined version of the

same, as well as a letter not to exceed three (3) pages providing the reasoning for any changes.

3 The form Confidentiality Order may also be downloaded from the Court’s website.

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Individual Practices and Rules of Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Marutollo

VIII. DISPUTES DURING ONGOING DEPOSITIONS

Parties encountering disputes during depositions shall first make every effort to resolve the

dispute among themselves. Should the parties be unable to reach a satisfactory resolution regarding

the dispute, the parties are directed to contact Chambers via email

(Marutollo_Chambers@nyed.uscourts.gov) during the deposition. The Court will promptly respond

to address any issues.

IX. PRE-TRIAL SUBMISSIONS

The parties must file a joint proposed pre-trial order in the format prescribed by the presiding

District Judge on or before the deadline set by the Court or as set forth in the presiding District Judge’s

Individual Practices and Rules.

Where the parties have consented to Judge Marutollo, the following rules apply for pre-trial

submissions.

A. Joint Proposed Pre-Trial Orders

Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, within sixty (60) days from the date for the

completion of discovery in a civil case, the parties shall file a joint proposed pre-trial

order that includes the following:

1. The full caption of the action;

2. The names, addresses (including firm names), telephone number, and email

addresses of trial counsel;

3. A brief statement by Plaintiff as to the basis of subject-matter jurisdiction, and

a brief statement by Defendant as to the presence or absence of subject-matter

jurisdiction, each of which shall include citations to all authority relied on and

relevant facts as to citizenship and jurisdictional amount;

4. A brief summary by each party of the claims and defenses that the party has

asserted that remain to be tried—without recital of evidentiary matters but with

citations to all statutes on which the party has relied—and of the claims and

defenses that the party has previously asserted that are not to be tried;

5. A statement by each party as to whether the case is to be tried with or without

a jury, and the number of trial days needed;

6. Any stipulations or agreed statements of fact or law that have been agreed to

by all parties;

7. A statement by each party as to the witnesses whose testimony is to be offered

in the party’s case-in-chief, indicating whether such witnesses will testify in

person or by deposition. The statement should also include a brief narrative of

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Individual Practices and Rules of Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Marutollo

the expected testimony for each witness. Only listed witnesses will be

permitted to testify except when prompt notice has been given and good cause

shown;

8. A designation by each party of those portions of any deposition testimony to

be offered in its case-in-chief, with any cross-designations and objections by

any other party;

9. A table by each party of exhibits to be offered in the party’s case-in-chief, with

an indication as to whether any party objects to any such exhibits and a brief

statement of the nature of the objection (e.g., “relevance,” “authenticity,”

“hearsay”), and a brief response to those objections. The table format below

should be followed:

Exhibit Description Objection(s) Brief response to

the Objection(s)

All exhibits must be pre-marked in the order in which they are expected to be

used (using numerals for Plaintiff’s exhibits and letters for Defendant’s

exhibits). Parties are expected to resolve before trial all issues of authenticity

or chain of custody. Only exhibits listed will be received in evidence, except

for good cause shown.

B. Filings Prior to Trial

1. All motions addressing any evidentiary or other issues that should be resolved

in limine shall be filed at least thirty (30) days before the trial. Responses, if

any, shall be due seven (7) days later. Oral argument will be scheduled if

necessary.

2. For jury trials, proposed jury instructions, voir dire questions, and a jury

verdict sheet shall be filed at least ten (10) days prior to the start of the trial.

These proposed pre-trial submissions should also be submitted to Chambers

via email (Marutollo_Chambers@nyed.uscourts.gov) in Microsoft Word

format. If a party believes that it would be useful, a pretrial memorandum shall

also be filed at least ten (10) days prior to the start of the trial.

3. For non-jury trials, if a party believes that it would be useful, a pretrial

memorandum shall be filed at least ten (10) days prior to the start of the trial.

C. Courtesy Copies of Trial Exhibits

Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, each party shall provide the Court with three binders

of their pre-marked exhibits with tabs reflecting each exhibit’s corresponding number or letter. The

parties shall bring their binders to the final pre-trial conference.

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Individual Practices and Rules of Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Marutollo

X. SEALING OF SUBMISSIONS

No document may be filed with the Clerk under seal without an order of this Court addressing

the specific documents to be sealed. Any application to seal shall be accompanied by the proposed

sealed document(s), an affidavit or affidavits, and a memorandum of law, demonstrating that the

standards for sealing have been met and specifically addressing Lugosch v. Pyramid Co. of Onondaga,

435 F.3d 110 (2d Cir. 2006), and any other controlling authority. The application shall also include

the position of all other parties, as well as a proposed redacted version of the document(s) in question

for public docketing. Nothing herein is intended to alter or modify the applicability of Fed. R. Civ.

P. 5.2. The redactions expressly authorized by Rule 5.2 may be made without application to the

Court. Instructions for filing sealed documents are available on the Court’s website.

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Individual Practices and Rules of Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Marutollo