913 Coleman A. Young Municipal Center
2 Woodward Ave
Detroit, MI 48226
Phone: 313-224-2953
Hours: 8:30am to 4:30pm
Staff:
Court Clerk: Lori.Fletcher@3rdcc.org
Court Reporter: Video Courtroom
Deputy: J. Cruts
JUDGE POPKE’S REMOTE PROTOCOLS
October 1, 2020
As we navigate the remote operations, we will continue to update the Protocols in an attempt to make this easier and more convenient for all of us.
Our courtroom, 913, will continue to operate remotely until further notice. The courtroom will be closed to both counsel and the public. You may contact us either by email, or when necessary, by phone. Try to email first as it is easier for us to respond and for all of us to have a paper trail for our conversations. Please do not email the judge as doing so may constitute an ex parte communication.
You may contact the Court Clerk (Lori.Fletcher@3rdcc.org) by email on the following issues:
1. To adjourn general Motions (other than Motions for Summary Disposition).
The moving party may request adjournments for motions, other than Motions for Summary Disposition, by email with appropriate notice to all interested parties. Only the moving party may request an adjournment. Only two adjournments will be permitted.
2. To obtain the next available motion date and time.
There is no limit on the number of motions to be scheduled for any motion date. You may contact the clerk, however, to verify a motion date if you have first checked the docket on the Court website. The court will also hear motions on dates other than Friday when necessary or specially requested.
You may contact the Judicial Attorney by email on the following issues:
1. To request an adjournment of Oral Argument on a Motion for Summary Disposition or an Appeal to the Circuit Court. The dates pertaining to Motions for Summary Disposition or Appeals to the Circuit Court may only be adjourned by the moving party AND for good cause. See additional rules governing the scheduling of Motions for Summary Disposition, below.
2. To discuss scheduled Trial Dates.
**Effective Immediately (10/20/2020), Counsel may no longer stipulate to adjourn to Track 3. Please file a motion explaining the reason(s) that dates should be adjourned. The COVID-19 Pandemic, alone, is no longer sufficient reason for an adjournment. **
REMOTE OPERATION
MOTIONS, HEARINGS, AND CONFERENCES. All hearings and conferences, both on and off the record, are being conducted via Zoom until further notice. Judge Popke’s Zoom waiting room can be accessed by entering Meeting ID 909 657 6738 into the Zoom app or following the link on the Court’s website. Counsel are expected to be in the Judge’s Zoom waiting room, and in compliance with all Judge Popke’s Zoom Protocols (see below), at the time of their scheduled conference or hearing. Once all attorneys for all parties are present, they will be let into Judge Popke’s virtual courtroom on a first-come, first-served basis. Attorneys who have not appeared in a case, clients, and attorneys awaiting pro-hac vice admission will not be admitted to the virtual courtroom without the express permission of the Judge.
Clients, attorneys who will not be appearing, and the public are welcome to attend hearings held on the record by viewing the Live Stream on YouTube. The Live Stream can also be accessed through the Court’s website by following the link for Zoom Virtual Meetings .
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ZOOM PROTOCOLS. At any given time, Judge Popke may have between 10 and 30 individuals in her Zoom waiting room. That is why it is imperative that these Zoom Protocols are followed. ZOOM PARTICIPANTS WILL NOT BE ADMITTED TO JUDGE POPKE’S VIRTUAL COURTROOM UNLESS:
1. Counsel is in proper court attire.
2. Participants have renamed themselves in their Zoom settings as follows: [Case Number, Attorney Name (Client Name)]. For example, a participant’s display name may appear as “19-012345-CB, Jane Smith (Acme LLC)”.
3. Counsel is expected to appear with both audio and video for all hearings or conferences unless otherwise given permission to appear with audio only. Accordingly, counsel must attend Zoom hearings from a proper business location (i.e., no vehicles). Virtual backgrounds are encouraged, but not necessary, and should be professional in nature. Please review what is visible in the background of your home office or workspace and err on the side of professionalism.
NOTE: You cannot rename yourself from the Zoom waiting room. You must exit the Zoom waiting room, access your Zoom settings in the app, rename yourself as indicated above, and then re-enter the waiting room.
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DISPOSITIVE MOTIONS. Attorneys must submit an ePraecipe along with their dispositive motion in order for it to be scheduled and heard. Please pencil in any Tuesday or Thursday date on the ePraecipe, but understand that this date will likely be changed according to the Judge’s schedule. After an ePraecipe has been filed, a Scheduling Order will be issued identifying the date by which any responses or replies are due. If you receive a hearing date that conflicts with another hearing on your schedule, you should contact the Clerk as soon as possible. Hearings for dispositive motions will only be changed for good cause if more than one week has elapsed since the Scheduling Order was issued. IF A SCHEDULING ORDER HAS NOT BEEN ISSUED, YOUR MOTION WILL NOT BE HEARD. Motion hearings scheduled for oral argument will also be listed on the judge’s Civil Docket found on the Court’s website.
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JUDGE’S COPIES –After a dispositive motion is e-filed, the moving party for each motion will be responsible for gathering everything needed to provide the Judge with an Electronic Judge’s Copy. The Judge's Copy may be sent via email only if all pleadings, and exhibits to pleadings, can be attached to a single email. In most cases, Judge's Copies should be sent via DropBox or a similar file sharing application. The DropBox/File Sharing link (or single email) MUST include: (1) your motion; (2) any responses or replies to your motion; and (3) a SECOND, SEPARATE PDF that contains:
(a) Any evidence or exhibits supporting the motion or response;
(b) Significant/important or unpublished case law cited in the briefs; and
(c) A TABLE OF EXHIBITS containing global page numbers where each exhibit or cited opinion can be found. Alternatively, you can bookmark or tab the PDF of exhibits, but it should always be a separate document from the motion or response so that it can be read alongside the text of the motion.
When citing from a deposition transcript, please provide the entire transcript but highlight the language cited in your brief.
We are working remotely so please do not send binders or paper copies of motions to the courthouse. Judge's copies are no longer required for Friday motions.
PLEASE E-MAIL JUDGE'S COPIES THE DAY BEFORE YOUR SCHEDULED ORAL ARGUMENTS.
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MOTION CALL. There will be Oral Arguments for all Friday motions. It is therefore imperative that any response be timely filed or the court will assume there is no opposition to the motion. Also, please be courteous and notify the Court if your motion may be dismissed. Also if you appear for a Motion that you did not file, please wait for that person to appear or you may give them a quick call. Do not try to get a ruling from the Judge in that person's absence.
THE COURT CLERK WILL NO LONGER BE POSTING A LIST FOR FRIDAY MOTIONS
Please double check that you are in compliance with Judge Popke’s Zoom Protocols, above, before entering the waiting room. Motion hearings will be live streamed on YouTube.
Please notify the Court via email if scheduling issues arise.
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EMERGENCY MATTERS: Please contact Marciana for scheduling emergency matters.
MOTIONS FOR RECONSIDERATION: The Court receives no notice when a motion for reconsideration is filed unless the filing attorney communicates with the Court's staff. Accordingly, it is imperative that any party filing a motion for reconsideration email a PDF copy to Marciana. Additionally, you may file a praecipe which will alert the Court's staff that your motion has been filed (please note that the praecipe will be rejected). With very few exceptions, Judge Popke does not accept responses to motions for reconsideration and does not entertain oral argument. The Court will reach out to the parties if a response or hearing is necessary.
MARCH 16 – MAY 31, 2020
Scheduling Orders in Civil Cases: Pursuant to Chief Judge Kenny’s March 23, 2020 Order, the Scheduling Order in every case is extended 60 days from its then applicable deadlines. Please review your current deadlines with your opposing counsel to ensure you are in agreement.
Jury Trials: All jury trials currently scheduled before January 1, 2021 are adjourned until further notice. Parties will receive information regarding rescheduling the jury trial after this Court resumes full operations.