Superior Court of Delaware, New Castle County Filing Rules

If parties cannot agree on a form of order, the prevailing party should submit the proposed form of order with a short motion explaining why it should be entered.

The proposed order's title must specifically identify the motion it addresses.

Daubert-type motions are presumptively decided on the written record.

In a complex case, the court may require proposed jury instructions to be filed with the pretrial stipulation for discussion at the pretrial conference.

The final trial status report must confirm completion of jury-instruction exchanges and discussions, note exceptions, and include a copy of the proposed instructions in the required form.

Unless an alternative schedule applies, an answering brief must be filed and served by the later of 30 days after motion service or 30 days after a separate joinder or supporting brief is filed.

Routine motions must be filed at least 15 calendar days before the noticed hearing date.

The action will be dismissed for want of prosecution if no proceedings are taken within 30 days after the notice.

The completed pretrial stipulation must be received no later than five business days before the pretrial conference, and noncompliance may result in sanctions.

All motions in limine and motions to exclude testimony must be filed by the indicated deadline.

Administrative email may be sent to Court staff when counsel represents all parties and copies them, but direct email to Judge Vavala should be used only when staff communication is inappropriate.

Forms of order should be submitted to the Court by letter.

Counsel may request a scheduling teleconference or office conference by contacting the Administrative Specialist.

The Administrative Specialist will set a trial date by email six to eight weeks after answers are filed or default judgment is entered.

Counsel must promptly notify the assigned judge’s Judicial Case Manager if a later-filed related civil case was assigned to a different judge because the Case Information Statement omitted the pending case.

Brief exhibits, motion courtesy copies, and letters must each be individually tabbed.

Unless the court orders otherwise, dispositive and Daubert motions and responses must be typeset in 14-point Times New Roman.

Unless another provision or order specifies otherwise, motions must follow Superior Court Civil Rule 78(b)'s formatting requirements.

Parties considering a paperless or nearly paperless trial should have a designated technology operator present each day, confer with opposing parties, and raise courtroom-technology arrangements at the pre-trial conference.

Briefs, exhibits, and appendices must be stapled or bound.

Chambers courtesy copies of filings must be emailed with a PDF attachment, and hard copies are not required by mail or hand delivery.

If papers must be delivered to a judge’s home in an expedited matter, only one copy should be delivered, and unreported-case compendia should not be served unless requested.

Two courtesy copies of a routine motion and its response must be promptly sent to chambers.

Counsel must provide Judge Wallace’s Chambers one courtesy copy of specified CCLD pleading documents and related exhibits as soon as possible.

Courtesy copies of all motions and supported submissions must be emailed to the Administrative Specialist and Law Clerks, copying all Delaware counsel of record.

A discovery motion or other non-dispositive, non-in-limine motion must be a speaking motion limited to 2,500 words, comply with Rule 107(b)’s typeface requirement, and ordinarily be noticed on a Monday 9:00 a.m. routine motions calendar.

A letter to the Court may not exceed 1,000 words.

Parties may exceed the four-page limit for case-dispositive or partial-dispositive motions without leave of court by complying with Del. Super. Ct. Civ. R. 107(h).

A motion in limine and its response are limited to six pages absent prior Court permission and must include all supporting authority.

A motion in limine and its response may not exceed 4,000 words without prior permission.

When counsel agree on additional hearing time, the request may be made to the judicial assistant during scheduling; if they disagree, a single joint letter must state each side’s position.

After the Administrative Specialist contacts all parties, plaintiff's counsel may request an indefinite postponement on behalf of all parties when all counsel expect an early settlement.

An amendment to the Case Scheduling Order must use the Stipulated Amended Case Scheduling Order form and state the current and proposed deadline for each event.

The court may deny extensions when scheduling-order deadlines are missed without good cause.

An amendment to the Trial Scheduling Order requires a court order entered on an appropriate motion or party stipulation.

The parties may serve third-party subpoenas only until the specified deadline.

Notice should be mailed at least 60 days before the settlement hearing, although a shorter period may be permitted upon application and a showing of good cause.

Initial discovery requests and their responses must be served electronically through LEXIS/NEXIS, but the actual production of documents is excluded.

Specified discovery requests and responses, excluding the actual production of documents, must be served electronically through LEXIS/NEXIS.

All correspondence with the Court must copy every Delaware attorney of record.

Motions must be electronically filed in the assigned case, with one courtesy copy provided to the assigned judge.

The Court issues its Trial Scheduling Order through File & Serve.

A case-dispositive motion must be electronically filed, with one courtesy copy and its exhibits delivered to Judge Davis's chambers.

The original dispositive motion, response, and reply should be electronically filed with one courtesy copy promptly delivered to chambers.

The original case-dispositive motion and response should be filed electronically.

The parties must meet and confer in good faith before moving the court for modifications or additional safeguards.

Further briefing and hearings on motions will occur only as ordered by the court.

Under the possible summary-judgment procedure, a party seeking leave must file a summary-judgment letter of no more than 1,250 words identifying the undisputed facts and legal theories supporting the motion.

The Court establishes the briefing schedule by letter after the motion is filed.

The parties must meet and confer immediately after exchanging proposed pretrial stipulation and order drafts.

Confidential or highly confidential discovery material used in open court or lodged as a trial exhibit loses its confidential status and becomes public unless the producing party obtains a court order maintaining its confidentiality.

Sealed documents will be released from confidential treatment or destroyed according to the court’s retention schedule.

Plaintiff’s counsel must file the Interim Status Report with a copy to the assigned judge and a $150 trial-fee check payable to the Prothonotary.

Counsel must arrange and pay for a court-certified interpreter for all required court appearances.

The trial fee must be paid by the date of the pretrial conference.

Payment for service fees must be made by check payable to the New Castle County Sheriff.

The trial fee is due no later than the pretrial conference; if unpaid within two business days after the conference, the case will be removed from the trial calendar and a new date will be scheduled upon payment.

A party’s decision not to have a newer attorney argue a motion will not cause the Court to draw any inference.

Counsel may optionally attach a few short exhibits or authorities directly to a motion or brief.

A motion to continue a trial date must be filed as a routine motion.

A case referred to a special discovery master may use a modified discovery-motion practice protocol.