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1/ A few further thoughts about the SEC's contempt motion. Prompted by a question from a friend who asked, "The Judge just has to rule on Musk's sur-reply motion today, right?" $TSLAQ
2/ My friend, I'm sure, was thinking that Elon Musk's attorney, John Hueston, had asked for permission to file a sur-reply of no more than 10 pages no later than March 22. And today is March 21.
3/ Well, this may surprise you but, no, Judge Nathan does not have to rule on that motion today. Or even tomorrow. Let's consider.
4/ The typical cadence in federal court motion practice, as I've outline in other threads, is Motion by the moving party (here, the SEC), Response by the other party, and Reply by the moving party.
5/ The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure addresses some of the types of pretrial motions that can be filed. Rule 12 lists a number of them; others are scattered throughout the rules.
6/ But the Motion, Response (or, Opposition), and Reply cadence is more a matter of long-standing tradition. That cadence recognizes that the moving party, who has the burden, should have the last word.
7/ Every federal court district publishes its own "local rules" that offer more detailed guidance on a variety of procedural points. The local rules for the Southern District of New York, in which the contempt action is pending, can be found here: nysd.uscourts.gov/rules/rules-20…
8/ Further, every federal district court judge (the judges who actually try cases) publishes his or own rules. You can find those of the Hon. U.S. District Court Judge Alison J. Nathan here: nysd.uscourts.gov/judge/nathan
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