STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA



STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA IN THE GENERAL COURT OF JUSTICE

COUNTY OF WAKE SUPERIOR COURT DIVISION

MARGARET DIXON, et al., )

Plaintiffs )

)

v. ) 11 CVS 16896

)

ROBERT RUCHO, et al., )

Defendants )

NORTH CAROLINA STATE )

CONFERENCE OF BRANCHES OF )

THE NAACP et al., )

Plaintiffs )

) 11 CVS 16940

v. )

)

THE STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA, ) (Consolidated)

et al., )

Defendants )

__________________________________________________________

ORDER and CASE MANAGEMENT SCHEDULING ORDER

__________________________________________________________

THIS MATTER came on for hearing on December 16, 2011 before the undersigned three judge panel sitting by designation of the Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court pursuant to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1-267.1. Pending before the Court were three motions: (1) Plaintiffs’ Motion to Consolidate,

(2) Defendants’ Motion to Extend the Time for Answering the Complaints and (3) Plaintiffs’ Motion For Expedited Discovery and Trial and For Case Management Order.

Motion to Consolidate

The Court has reviewed the pleadings in the above-referenced cases and finds that the cases involve common questions of law and arise from the same operative facts. Consolidation of these cases would conserve judicial resources and serve the best interest of all parties and witnesses. The parties have consented to this motion to consolidate.

It is therefore ORDERED that the above-styled cases are consolidated for all purposes, including discovery and trial, pursuant to N.C. R. Civ. P. 42(a). The case with the lowest case number (i.e., the first filed case) will be the lead case, and all future pleadings, motions, or other documents should be filed under that number. This order does not permit any party to make any claim, offer any evidence as to any claim, or question witnesses as to any claim that is not supported by that party’s own pleadings.

Motion to Extend Time for Answering Complaints

For good cause shown, and by consent of all parties, the time for Defendants to answer the Amended Complaints of the Plaintiffs is extended to December 19, 2011. Notwithstanding the above-stated Order allowing the Motion for Consolidation, answers to each Amended Complaint may be filed under the original captions for the purposes of clarity.

Motion for Expedited Discovery and Trial and For Case Management Order

The Plaintiffs’ Motion for Expedited Discovery and Trial and For Case Management Order is ALLOWED in part, and DENIED in part, as further set forth below. The Court imposes the following Case Management Order:

1. Defendants’ answers to the Plaintiffs’ Amended Complaints, including any motions to dismiss, will be filed no later than December 19, 2011.

2. Defendants’ memoranda in support of their motions to dismiss shall be filed on or before December 28, 2011.

3. Plaintiffs’ response memoranda to Defendants’ motions to dismiss shall be filed on or before January 4, 2012.

4. A hearing on the Defendants’ motions to dismiss is tentatively set for January 12, 2012. The time and place the hearing shall be announced by further order of the Court.

5. Within thirty (30) calendar days after Plaintiffs identify all expert witnesses that they intend to use in the trial of this matter, and produce such experts’ reports, Defendants shall identify all expert witnesses that Defendants intend to use in trial and produce their experts’ reports.

6. As used herein, “expert reports” shall include:

(i) a complete statement of all opinions the witness will express and the basis and reasons for them;

(ii) the facts or data considered by the witness in forming them;

(iii) any exhibits that will be used to summarize or support them;

(iv) the witness's qualifications, including a list of all publications authored in the previous 10 years;

(v) a list of all other cases in which, during the previous 4 years, the witness testified as an expert at trial or by deposition; and

(vi) a statement of the compensation to be paid for the study and testimony in the case.

7. Within the thirty day period after Plaintiffs identify their expert witnesses and provide their reports, the Plaintiffs shall make such experts available for deposition by the Defendants upon reasonable notice.

8. All motions, briefs, expert designations and reports shall be served upon opposing counsel by e-mail.

9. The parties shall comply with this schedule unless otherwise modified by the Court for good cause shown. This order is not intended to preclude the initiating or taking of discovery or filing other motions not enumerated herein as may be permitted by the North Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure.

This the 19th day of December, 2011.

/s/ Paul C. Ridgeway

____________________________________

Paul C. Ridgeway, Superior Court Judge

/s/ Joseph N. Crosswhite

____________________________________

Joseph N. Crosswhite, Superior Court Judge

/s/ Alma L. Hinton

____________________________________

Alma L. Hinton, Superior Court Judge

Certificate of Service

The undersigned certifies that the foregoing was served upon all parties by depositing the same in the custody of the United States Postal Service, First Class Postage prepaid, addressed as follows:

Eddie M. Speas, Jr.

John W. O’Hale

Caroline P. Mackie

Poyner Spruill, LLP

Post Office Box 1801

Raleigh, NC 27602-1801

Anita S. Earls

Clare Barnett

Allison Riggs

Southern Coalition for Social Justice

1415 Highway 54, Suite 101

Durham, NC 27707

Adam Stein

Ferguson Stein Chambers Gresham & Sumter, PA

312 West Franklin Street

Chapel Hill, NC 27516

Irving Joyner

Jennifer Watson Marsh

North Carolina NAACP

P.O. Box 335

Durham, NC 27702

Victor L. Goode, Asst. General Counsel

NAACP

4805 Mt. Hope Drive

Baltimore, MD 21215-3297

Alexander McC. Peters

Susan K. Nichols

NC Department of Justice

P.O. Box 629

Raleigh, NC 27602

Thomas A. Farr

Phillip J. Strach

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, PC

4208 Six Forks Road, Suite 1100

Raleigh, NC 27622

This the ___ day of December, 2011.

__________________________________________

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