Hon. Edgardo Ramos — Individual Rules of Practice

March 17, 2025

INDIVIDUAL PRACTICES OF JUDGE EDGARDO RAMOS

Contact Information Courtroom Deputy Clerk

Thurgood Marshall U.S. Courthouse Ms. Jazmin Trotman

40 Foley Square jazmin_trotman@nysd.uscourts.gov

New York, NY 10007

Courtroom 619

ChambersNYSDRamos@nysd.uscourts.gov

Unless otherwise ordered, matters before Judge Ramos shall be conducted in accordance

with the following procedures:

1. Communications with Chambers

A. Letters. Except as otherwise provided below, communications with chambers

shall be by letter, filed electronically via ECF. Letters seeking relief should be

filed as letter-motions in accordance with Section 1.E below. Letters between or

among counsel shall not be filed on ECF or otherwise sent to the Court (except as

exhibits to an otherwise properly filed document).

Letters to be filed under seal shall follow the procedure for Electronic Filing

Under Seal in Civil and Miscellaneous Cases in accordance with Section 3 of this

document.

Parties shall not submit courtesy copies of letters that are filed as described

above.

B. Telephone Calls. Except as provided below, telephone calls to chambers are

permitted only in situations requiring immediate attention.

C. Faxes and E-mails. Faxes to chambers are not permitted. Except as otherwise

provided in Section 1.A. above, if a party wishes to e-mail a .pdf document to the

Court, it must obtain prior permission. E-mails should indicate who in chambers

provided such permission, and must be copied to all counsel. If a document is

e-mailed to chambers, do NOT also send a hard copy.

D. Docketing, Scheduling, and Calendar Matters. Please email chambers at

ChambersNYSDRamos@nysd.uscourts.gov.

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E. Requests for Adjournments or Extensions of Time. All requests for

adjournments or extensions of time shall be in writing and filed on ECF as letter-

motions (if consistent with the S.D.N.Y. Local Rules and the S.D.N.Y.

“Electronic Filing Rules and Instructions”), and must include:

i. the original date;

ii. the number of previous requests for adjournment or extension, and the

reason(s) therefor;

iii. whether the previous requests were granted or denied;

iv. the reason for the instant request; and

v. whether the adversary consents, and, if not, the reasons given by the

adversary for refusing to consent.

If the requested adjournment or extension affects any other scheduled dates, a

proposed Revised Scheduling Order must be attached. Absent extraordinary

circumstances, requests for extensions will be denied if not made before the

expiration of the original deadline. If the request is for an adjournment of a court

appearance, absent an emergency, the request shall be made at least 48 hours

prior to the scheduled appearance. Requests for extensions of deadlines regarding

a matter that has been referred to a Magistrate Judge shall be directed to that

assigned Magistrate Judge.

F. Proposed Orders and Stipulations. All proposed orders, judgments and

stipulations requiring the Court’s signature, must be filed electronically on the

court’s ECF system.

G. Courtesy Copies. One courtesy hard copy of all motion papers (with the

exception of motions for admission pro hac vice and letter-motions), shall be

submitted to chambers as soon as practicable after filing. Courtesy copies should

be clearly marked as such. If hand-delivered, courtesy copies should be brought

to the Court Security Officers at the Worth Street entrance to 500 Pearl Street, not

to chambers.

PLEASE NOTE: If a courtesy copy of a document filed on ECF is not delivered

to chambers, it may not come to the Court’s attention in a timely manner.

Whenever possible, the courtesy hard copy should be accompanied by an

electronic copy submitted on any portable media (CD/DVD preferred).

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H. Urgent Communications. As a general matter, materials filed via ECF are

reviewed by the Court the business day after they have been filed. If a submission

requires immediate attention, please notify Chambers by email after you file the

submission via ECF.

2. Pleadings and Motions

A. Pre-Motion Conference in Civil Cases.

i. For discovery motions, follow Local Civil Rule 37.2, requiring the

moving party to request an informal conference with the Court before the

filing of any such motion. Strict adherence to Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(a)(1), the

“meet and confer” rule, is required. The parties should be prepared to

describe the time, place, and duration of the meeting, and to identify the

counsel involved.

ii. A pre-motion conference with the Court is required before making any

other motion, except where a litigant believes that delay in filing the

motion might result in the loss of a right or where a litigant seeks to make

a motion in a case involving an incarcerated pro se litigant, motion for

admission pro hac vice, motion for reargument or reconsideration, or

motion for temporary restraining order or preliminary injunction. To

arrange a pre-motion conference, the moving party shall submit a letter,

not to exceed three pages, setting forth the basis for the anticipated

motion. The opposing party shall submit a letter, also not to exceed three

pages, setting forth its position within three business days from the service

of the moving party’s letter. If a pre-motion conference is requested in

connection with proposed motion to dismiss, the request will stay the

deadline for the requesting party to move or answer, and a new deadline

will be set at the conference.

B. Motion Papers.

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

and in opposition to motions are limited to 25 pages, and reply

memoranda are limited to 10 pages. Memoranda of 10 pages or more

shall contain a table of contents. All memoranda of law shall be in 12-

point font or larger and be double-spaced, and shall have one inch margins

on all sides. Unless prior permission has been granted, sur-reply

memoranda will not be accepted.

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ii. All documents submitted in connection with motions must be bound in

any manner that is secure, does not obscure the text, and permits the

document to lie reasonably flat when open. Parties should submit multiple

volumes rather than large documents that do not lie reasonably flat when

open.

C. Special Rules for Summary Judgment Motions.

i. Except for pro se litigants, the moving party shall provide all other parties

with an electronic copy of the moving party’s Statement of Material Facts

pursuant to Local Civil Rule 56.1. Opposing parties must reproduce each

entry in the moving party’s Rule 56.1 Statement, and set out the opposing

party’s response directly beneath it.

ii. With respect to any deposition transcript that is supplied, whether in

whole or in part, in connection with a summary judgment motion, the

index to the deposition should be included if it is available.

iii. Except for pro se litigants, the parties shall provide the Court with an

electronic, text-searchable courtesy copy of any hearing or deposition

transcript, or a portion thereof, on which the parties rely, if such a copy is

available, unless doing so would be unduly burdensome. (Parties shall

provide these materials on a CD only, not on a DVD or memory stick and

not by e-mail.)

D. Oral Argument on Motions. Parties may request oral argument by letter at the

time their moving, opposing or reply papers are filed. The Court will determine

whether argument will be heard and, if so, will advise counsel of the date and

time.

3. Electronic Filing Under Seal in Civil and Miscellaneous Cases

i. Sealing/Redactions Not Requiring Court Approval. Federal Rule of

Civil Procedure 5.2 describes sensitive information that must be redacted

from public court filings without seeking prior permission from the Court.

ii. Sealing/Redaction Requiring Court Approval. Motions or Letter

Motions for approval of sealed or redacted filings in civil and

miscellaneous cases and the subject documents, including the proposed

sealed document(s), must be filed electronically through the court's ECF

system in conformity with the court's standing order, 19-mc-00583, and

ECF Rules & Instructions, section 6.

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The motion must be filed in public view, must explain the particular

reasons for seeking to file that information under seal and should not

include confidential information sought to be filed under seal.

Supporting papers must be separately filed electronically and may be filed

under seal or redacted only to the extent necessary to safeguard

information sought to be filed under seal.

The proposed sealed document must be contemporaneously filed under

seal in the ECF system and electronically related to the motion. The

summary docket text, but not the sealed document, will be open to public

inspection and should not include confidential information sought to be

filed under seal.

Where the motion seeks approval to redact information from a document

that is to be publicly filed, the filing party shall: (a) publicly file the

document with the proposed redactions, and (b) electronically file under

seal a copy of the unredacted document with the proposed redactions

highlighted. Both documents must be electronically filed through the ECF

system and related to the motion.

Any party unable to comply with the requirement for electronic filing

under seal through the ECF system, or who has reason to believe that a

particular document should not be electronically filed, must move for

leave of the Court to file in the traditional manner, on paper.

4. Pretrial Procedures

A. Joint pretrial statements in Civil Cases. Unless otherwise ordered by the

Court, within 30 days after the date for completion of discovery in a civil case, or,

if a dispositive motion has been filed, within 30 days after a decision on the

motion, the parties shall file a joint pretrial statement, with one courtesy hard

copy for chambers.

The joint pretrial statement shall include the information required by Fed. R. Civ.

P. 26(a)(3) and the following:

i. The full caption of the action.

ii. The names, addresses (including firm names), e-mail addresses, and

telephone and fax numbers of trial counsel.

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iii. A brief statement by plaintiff as to the basis of subject matter jurisdiction,

and a brief statement by each other party as to the presence or absence of

subject matter jurisdiction. Such statements shall include citations to all

statutes relied on and relevant facts as to citizenship and jurisdictional

amount.

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

asserted that remain to be tried, without recital of evidentiary matter but

including citations to all statutes relied on. The parties shall also identify

all claims and defenses previously asserted that are not to be tried.

v. 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.

vi. A statement as to whether all parties have consented to trial of the case by

a magistrate judge (without identifying which parties have or have not so

consented).

vii. Any stipulations or agreed statements of fact or law.

viii. A list of the witnesses each party expects to call on its case in chief,

including a very brief description of the witness’s role and/or the subject

matter of his or her anticipated testimony, and a statement as to whether

any other party objects to the witness.

ix. A designation by each party of deposition testimony to be offered in its

case in chief, with any cross-designations and objections by any other

party.

x. A list by each party of exhibits to be offered in its case in chief, with one

star indicating exhibits to which no party objects on grounds of

authenticity, and two stars indicating exhibits to which no party objects on

any ground.

xi. A statement of the relief sought, including damages claimed, itemizing

each component or element of the damages sought with respect to each

claim, and including the manner and method used to calculate the claimed

damages.

xii. A statement as to whether the parties consent to a less than unanimous

verdict.

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B. Filings Prior to Trial in Civil Cases. Unless otherwise ordered by the Court,

each party shall file the following documents, and submit two courtesy hard

copies to chambers, 15 days before the date of commencement of trial if such a

date has been fixed, or 30 days after the filing of the joint pretrial statement if no

date has been fixed:

i. In jury cases, proposed voir dire questions, requests to charge, verdict form,

and all documentary exhibits and depositions excerpts that will be offered as

substantive evidence. The plaintiff’s proposed voir dire questions should

include an agreed upon paragraph (designated as such) for the Court to use in

voir dire to provide the jury panel with a brief explanation of the case. If the

parties cannot agree to a paragraph after good faith efforts, their respective

proposed paragraphs (designated as such) should be set for in their respective

voir dire submissions. In addition to being filed in the normal manner,

proposed jury instructions should be e-mailed to Judge Ramos’ law clerk.

Counsel should send an email to chambers to make arrangements for same.

Each proposed jury instruction must contain a citation to the source/authority

for the proposed instruction, or the request will be disregarded.

ii. In nonjury cases, proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law. Proposed

findings of fact should be detailed, and proposed conclusions of law should

include a statement of the elements of each claim or defense.

iii. In all cases, motions addressing any evidentiary or other issues that should be

resolved in limine; and

iv. In any case in which any party believes it would be useful, a pretrial

memorandum.

C. Filings in Opposition. Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, any party may

file, and submit one courtesy hard copy to chambers, the following documents

within one week of the filing of any document described in section 4.B above:

i. Objections to the other party’s proposed voir dire questions or requests to

charge.

ii. Opposition to any motion in limine.

iii. Opposition to any legal argument made in a pretrial memorandum.

D. Additional Submissions in Non-Jury Cases. At the time the joint pretrial

statement is filed, each party shall serve, but not file, the following documents,

and submit two courtesy hard copies to chambers:

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i. Affidavits constituting the direct testimony of each trial witness, except

for the testimony of an adverse witness for whom a party has requested

and the Court has agreed to hear direct testimony during the trial. Three

business days after submission of such affidavits, counsel for each party

shall submit a list of all affiants whom he or she intends to cross-examine

at trial. Only those witnesses who will be cross-examined need appear at

trial. The original affidavit shall be marked as an exhibit at trial.

ii. All deposition excerpts which will be offered as substantive evidence, as

well as a 1-page synopsis (with page references) of those excerpts for each

deposition.

iii. All documentary exhibits.

5. Post-Trial Procedures. Counsel are responsible for raising promptly any issue

concerning the accuracy of transcripts certified by the Court Reporter to be used for

purposes of appeal. Counsel perceiving an error that is material shall stipulate to the

appropriate correction or, if agreement cannot be reached, shall proceed by motion on

notice. Non-material defects in syntax, grammar, spelling or punctuation should be

ignored.

6. Default Judgments. A party that wishes to obtain a default judgment must proceed by

way of order to show cause. Follow the Default Judgment Procedure, attached hereto as

Attachment A.

7. Bankruptcy Appeals. Briefs must be submitted in accordance with Federal Rules of

Bankruptcy Procedure 8014 through 8018. Counsel may extend the dates provided

therein by stipulation submitted to the Court no later than two business days before the

brief is due. The page limits in Rule 7.1(c) of the Local Civil Rules of the United States

District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York must be observed.

8. Criminal Cases

A. Initial Matters. Upon assignment of a criminal case to Judge Ramos, the parties

shall immediately arrange with the Courtroom Deputy for a prompt initial

conference, at which the defendant will be present. The Assistant United States

Attorney (“AUSA”) shall provide to chambers, as soon as practicable, a courtesy

copy of the Indictment or Information, and a courtesy copy of the Complaint, if

one exists.

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B. Guilty Pleas. Guilty pleas will ordinarily be taken by Judge Ramos and will not

be assigned to Magistrate Judges by standing order. Permission for a guilty plea

to be taken before a Magistrate Judge may be given under special circumstances.

The AUSA shall provide a courtesy copy of any plea agreement or related

documents to chambers as soon as practicable.

C. Sentencing. Follow the Sentencing Procedures attached hereto as Attachment B.

9. Encouraged Participation of Junior Members of Legal Teams. Due to the

decline of trials, opportunities to train junior lawyers in courtroom skills have

become increasingly rare. Accordingly, where junior lawyers are familiar with

the matter under consideration, but are not experienced in arguing before a court,

they should be encouraged to actively participate. In such circumstances, where it

creates an opportunity for a junior lawyer to argue, this Court is amenable to

permitting more than one lawyer to argue for one party.

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ATTACHMENT A

DEFAULT JUDGMENT PROCEDURE

1. Prepare an Order to Show Cause for default judgment and make the Order returnable

before Judge Ramos in Courtroom 619 of the United States Courthouse, 40 Foley Square,

New York, NY. Leave the date and time of the conference blank. Judge Ramos will set

the date and time when he signs the Order.

2. Attach the following papers to the Order to Show Cause:

A. an attorney's affidavit setting forth:

i. why a default judgment is appropriate, including a description of the

method and date of service of the original summons and complaint;

ii. whether, if the default is applicable to fewer than all of the defendants, the

Court may appropriately order a default judgment on the issue of liability

and/or damages prior to resolution of the entire action (see Fed. R. Civ. P.

Rule 54(b));

iii. the proposed Statement of Damages and the basis for each element of

damages including interest, attorney's fees, and costs; and

iv. legal authority for why an inquest would be unnecessary;

B. a proposed default judgment;

C. copies of all of the pleadings;

D. a copy of the affidavit of service of the original summons and complaint;

E. if failure to answer is the basis for the default, a Certificate from the Clerk of

Court stating that no answer has been filed.

3. File the proposed Order to Show Cause on ECF in accordance with the Court’s

Electronic Case Filing Rules & Instructions.

4. After the Clerk approves the Order to Show Cause and the Judge signs and files it on

ECF, print a copy and serve it on the defendant.

5. Prior to the return date, file the affidavit of service on the defendant of a conformed copy

of the Order. For ECF cases, the affidavit of service must be filed electronically on the

ECF system.

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ATTACHMENT B

SENTENCING PROCEDURES

Unless permission to the contrary has been obtained, every document in a

sentencing submission, including letters, should be filed in the public record, either in

paper form or through the ECF system, using the procedures described below. The

defendant is responsible for filing all letters submitted on behalf of the defendant,

including those from friends, relatives, etc. The Government is responsible for filing all

letters from victims.

In this regard, the parties are referred to E-Government Act of 2002 and the

Southern District’s ECF Rules & Instructions, Section 21, Privacy and Public Access to

ECF cases, (“Privacy Policy”) and reminded not, unless necessary, to include the five

categories of “sensitive information” in their submissions (i.e., social security numbers;

names of minor children [use the initials only]; dates of birth [use the year only];

financial account numbers; and home addresses [use only the city and state]). Parties

may redact the five categories of “sensitive information” and the six categories of

information requiring caution (i.e., personal identifying numbers; medical records,

treatment and diagnosis; employment history; individual financial information;

proprietary or trade secret information; and information regarding an individual’s

cooperation with the government) as described in the Privacy Policy, without application

to the Court. If any material is redacted from the publicly filed document, only those

pages containing the redacted material will be filed under seal. Bring a copy of those

pages to the sentencing proceeding, marked to indicate what information has been

redacted from the publicly filed materials, to give to the Court for filing under seal.

1. A defendant’s sentencing submission shall be served two weeks in advance of the date

set for sentence. The Government’s sentencing submission shall be served one week in

advance of the date set for sentence. The parties should provide the Court with one

courtesy copy of each submission when it is served. At the time it is served, a party shall

file its sentencing submission following one of the two procedures described here.

A. Paper Filing. If the case is not electronically filed, letters must be filed as hard

copies. A party shall group all letters together in a single paper filing under a

cover marked SENTENCING MEMORANDUM with the caption and docket

number clearly indicated and submit it to the Clerk’s Office.

B. ECF Filing. If the case is electronically filed, letters must be electronically filed

on the ECF system. A party shall group and file the letters together as

attachments to a single document marked SENTENCING MEMORANDUM with

the caption and docket number clearly indicated.

2. If a party redacts information beyond the eleven categories of information identified in

the Privacy Policy, an application to do so must be served and filed at the time the

sentencing submission is served. The application should clearly identify the redaction

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and explain the reasons for the redaction. The application will be addressed at the

sentencing proceeding.

3. If you have any questions about these procedures, send an email to chambers.

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