RULE XXVI
CASE MANAGEMENT IN CIVIL CASES

Except for Small Claims, Eviction or Reference to Magistrate which shall be governed by Civil Rule 53 and the Order of Reference of the Local Rules of Court, this rule shall apply to all civil cases.

(A) Purpose: The purpose of this rule is to establish, pursuant to Sup. R. 5, a system for civil case management which will achieve the prompt and fair disposal of civil cases.

(B) Scheduling of events: The scheduling of a case begins when a civil case is filed.

(C) Clerical Steps:

(1) Summons shall be served in accordance with the Ohio Rules of Procedure. In the event there is a failure of service, the clerk shall notify counsel immediately. If counsel fails to obtain service of summons within one year from the date the cause of action has been filed, then the clerk shall notify counsel that the case will be dismissed in ten (10) days unless good cause is shown to the contrary.

(2) After the filing of any responsive pleading or motion under Civil Rule 12, the clerk shall immediately assign the case at random and forward the file to the judge.

(D) Judicial steps:

(1) Status Hearing: The court will then set a status hearing within 45 days. The purpose of the status hearing is to set discovery and motion deadlines so a formal pretrial can be set. Also, at this hearing, pursuant to the Order of Reference of the Local Rules of Court, a case may be referred to a magistrate for disposition.

(2) Pretrials: For the purpose of this rule, "pretrial" shall mean a court supervised conference. The judge may require a formal pretrial statement to be filed seven (7) days prior to the scheduled pretrial.

Any attorney for a party to the action who fails to attend a scheduled pretrial conference, without just cause being shown, may be punished as for contempt of this court. In addition, sanctions such as default or dismissal may be imposed on the offending party.

Notice of pretrial conference shall be give to all counsel of record by mail and / or by telephone from court personnel not less than seven (7) days prior to the conference. Any application for continuance of the conference shall be addressed to the judge to whom the case has been assigned.

Counsel attending the pretrial conference must have complete authority to stipulate on items of evidence and must have full settlement authority.

The court shall attempt to narrow legal issues, to reach stipulations as to facts in controversy and, in general, to shorten the time and expense of trial. The court shall, at that time, determine whether or not trial briefs should be submitted and shall fix a date when the are to be filed.

Any judge presiding at pretrial conference or trial shall have the authority to dismiss the action for want of prosecution on motion of defendant upon failure of plaintiff, and/or his counsel to appear in person at any pretrial conference or trial; to order the plaintiff to proceed with the case and to decide and determine all matters ex parte upon failure of the defendant to appear in person or by counsel at any pretrial conference or trial as required; to make such other order as the court may deem appropriate under all the circumstances.

If the case is not settled at pretrial, then the case will be set for trial at a time reasonably convenient to all parties.

(3) Continuances: No party shall be granted a continuance of a trial or a hearing without a written motion from the party or his counsel stating the reason for the continuance.

When a continuance is requested for the reason that counsel is scheduled to appear in another case assigned for trial on the same date in the same or another trial court of this state, the case which was first set for trial shall have priority and shall be tried on the date assigned. Criminal cases assigned for trial have priority over civil cases assigned for trial. The granting of any other request for continuance of a scheduled trial is a matter within the discretion of the trial court.

(4) Judgment entries: Counsel for the party in whose favor an order or judgment is rendered shall prepare a journal entry. If not prepared immediately for signature, that entry shall be submitted to opposing counsel within three (3) working days of the decision. Opposing counsel shall approve or reject the entry, within three (3) days. Within ten (10) days of the decision, the journal entry shall be submitted to the judge, or, thereafter, the court will prepare the journal entry.

Entries of settlement may be filed at any time. The avoidance of trial by settlement shall be allowed without the filing of an entry, but such entry shall be filed within ten (10) days, or the case will be dismissed for want of prosecution.

The journal entry shall state which party will pay the court costs.

The civil clerk shall provide each judge of the court with a monthly report that indicates all outstanding civil matters before the court.

RULE XXVII
RENT ESCROW AND SMALL CLAIMS MEDIATION

Section One (1) for Rent Escrow Accounts.

Section Two (2) for Mediation of Small Claims Cases.

(1) It shall be mandatory for all rent escrow litigants to be referred to mediation through the Private Complaint Mediation Service upon filing for rent escrow by the tenant and prior to an answer by the landlord. All requirements of Rule XXVII apply.

(2) Those who file Small Claims cases may choose to have their case referred for mediation on the date of filing of the Small Claims case or on the date of trial. Small Claims mediation shall be by the Private Complaint Mediation Service.

Rent Escrow and Small Claims mediation shall continue through the Private Complaint Mediation Service until further order of the court.

RULE XXVIII
ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION FILINGS
[See also the Clerk of Courts information on Electronic Filing.]

A. Facsimile Filings

In conformity with Ohio Civil Rule 5(E) and effective upon approval by the Ohio Supreme Court Committee on Technology and the Courts [Such approval occurred on 9/2/04.], pleadings and other papers may be filed with the Clerk of Courts by facsimile transmission subject to the following conditions:

1. Definitions. The following terms in this Rule shall be as follows:

(a) Facsimile transmission – means the transmission of a source document by a facsimile machine that encodes a document into signals, transmits and reconstructs the signals to print a duplicate of the source document at the receiving end.   (b) Facsimile machine – means a machine that can send and receive a facsimile transmission either as a stand-alone device or as part of a computer system.   (c) Fax or faxes – an abbreviation for “facsimile” and refers, as indicated by the context, to facsimile transmission or to a document so transmitted.   (d) Source document – means the document transmitted to the court by facsimile machine/system.   (e) Effective Original document – means the facsimile copy of the source document received by the Clerk of Courts and maintained as the original document in the court’s file.   (f) Effective Date and Time of Filing - means the date and time the filing has been received as indicated at the top of each page of the incoming fax transmission as printed out by the Clerk of Courts facsimile equipment.

2. Application of Rules and Orders. This Local Rule has been instituted solely for the convenience of those filing documents with the Clerk of Courts. Neither the Clerk of Courts nor the Municipal Court for Hamilton County, Ohio, assumes any new or additional responsibilities, obligations or liabilities by virtue of this Local Rule, except as expressly provided for herein. Further, this Local Rule pertains only to the method of filing; it does NOT override, alter, amend, revoke or otherwise change any Local Rule or Ohio Rule of Civil or Criminal Procedure respecting the requirements of any filings such as obtaining the consent of parties or counsel or obtaining signatures or the authorization to sign for opposing counsel.

3. Filings Not Accepted. This Rule authorizes the filing of facsimile transmissions for Municipal civil cases of all pleadings, motions and other documents that may otherwise be filed with the Clerk of Courts, but anything stated or implied above to the contrary notwithstanding, the following documents may NOT be filed by facsimile transmission:

(a) Any filing that commences an action for which the Clerk of Courts must collect an initial case deposit against costs;   (b) Any filing for which a specific filing fee must be collected; or   (c) Any filing for which the Clerk of Courts is required to effectuate service or summons. As of the effective date of this Rule and until further notice Municipal Court criminal and traffic case filings are NOT being accepted via facsimile transmissions.

4. Cover Page. The person filing a document by fax shall provide therewith a cover page containing the following information:

(a) the case number (or indicate none);   (b) the caption of the case;   (c) the assigned judge (or indicate none);   (d) a description of the documents being filed;   (e) the date of transmission;   (f) the transmitting fax number; and   (g) an indication of the number of pages included in the transmission, including the cover page.

If a document is sent by fax to the Clerk of Courts without the cover page information listed above, it will be deposited in the case jacket but shall not be entered into the Case Docket and shall be considered to be a nullity and thereby stricken. The Clerk of Courts is not required to send any form of notice to the sender of a failed fax filing.

5. Facsimile Machine. The telephone number of the facsimile machine available for receiving fax filings for Municipal civil cases is 513-946-5710. This line is available twenty-four (24) hours per day seven (7) days per week. Fax filings may NOT be sent directly to the Court for filing but may only be transmitted directly through the facsimile equipment operated by the Clerk of Courts. Transmissions sent to any other location are not covered by nor permitted under this Local Rule. Copies of filings otherwise properly filed with the Clerk of Courts, however, such as courtesy copies for the Court, may be sent by facsimile directly to the Court, but any such transmittals shall not be considered as having been filed thereby.

6. Document Restrictions. A "fax transmission", as referred to in this Local Rule, may contain more than one (1) document but may not apply to more than one (1) case number per transmission. Motions and other filings making reference to or incorporating other documents attached to the motion or other filing as an exhibit thereof shall be considered as being part of a single filing for purposes of this rule. If exhibits are impossible or burdensome to send by facsimile transmission the original exhibits may be separately filed if done so within forty-eight (48) hours of the related facsimile transmission. If the exhibits are filed separately, then an insert page describing the exhibit being filed separately must be included in the facsimile transmission. Facsimile transmissions may not be in excess of twenty (20) pages each regardless of the number of documents being sent.

7. Fees. There are no additional costs or fees related to facsimile transmissions except to the extent that the filings are taxed as cost to any case.

8. Filing Acceptance or Rejection. The Clerk of Courts is hereby authorized to reject any facsimile transmission filing if the sender fails to provide the Cover Page required under Section Four (4) of this Rule or if the transmission contains a filing not acceptable under Section Three (3) of this Rule.

9. Date and Time. Subject to the other provisions of this Local Rule, all documents filed by fax shall be considered filed with the Clerk of Courts as of the date and time that the fax transmission has been received by the Clerk of Courts. For purposes of this provision and for entering such filings into the electronic Case Docket system, a facsimile filing shall be deemed to have been received by the Clerk of Courts as of the date and time printed at the top of each page of the incoming fax transmission as printed out by the Clerk of Courts facsimile equipment. There shall be no other date and time stamp required for the filing of a fax document with the Clerk of Courts. The risks of transmitting a document by fax to the Clerk of Courts shall be borne entirely by the sender. Anyone using facsimile filing is urged to verify receipt of such filings by the Clerk of Courts through whatever technological means are then available, such as the activity register or report function of the transmitting equipment.

10. Original Filing. A document filed by fax shall be accepted as the effective original filing if the person sending the fax complies with all of the requirements set forth in this Local Rule. The person making a fax filing need not file any source document with the Clerk of Courts. However, until the case is closed and all opportunities for post judgment relief are exhausted the filer must maintain in their records and have available for production on request by the Court the source document of any document filed by fax, with original signatures as otherwise required under the applicable rules, together with the original copy of the facsimile cover sheet used for the subject filing.

11. Signatures. Facsimile filings shall contain a signature or a /s/ notation followed by the name of the person signing the source document.

B. Internet Electronic Filings

In conformity with Ohio Revised Code Civil Rule 5(E) and effective upon approval by the Ohio Supreme Court Committee on Technology and the Courts [Such approval occurred on 9/2/04.], pleadings and other papers may be filed with the Clerk of Courts electronically via the Internet, subject to the following conditions:

1. Definitions. The following terms in this Rule shall be as follows:

(a) Electronic Filing – (E-filing or efiling) The process of transmitting a digitized source document electronically via the Internet to the Clerk’s office for the purpose of filing the document and refers, as indicated by the context, to the means of transmission or to a document so transmitted.   (b) Electronic Mail – (Email or e-mail) Messages sent by a user and received by another through an electronic service system utilizing the public Internet.   (c) Source document – means the document transmitted to the court via the Internet.   (d) Original document – means the transmitted copy of the source document received by the Clerk of Courts and maintained in the court's file.   (e) Date and Time of Filing - means the date and time the filing has been received, as indicated on the sender's computer screen after the document has been uploaded to the Clerk of Courts, unless rejected and not corrected. (See Filing Acceptance or Rejection Cycle below.)

2. Application of Rules and Orders. Unless modified by approved stipulation or order of the Court or a judicial officer, all Federal Rules of Civil and Criminal Procedure, Ohio Rules of Civil and Criminal Procedure and Local Rules, and orders of the Court shall continue to apply to documents electronically filed.

3. Filings Not Accepted. The following Municipal civil filings may NOT be filed by electronic transmission:

(a) rent escrow applications or   (b) anything that requires a cash bond posting or a jury demand fee or   (c) applications for trusteeship filings or   (d) Memorandums or   (e) Notices.

Currently, we do NOT accept Municipal criminal or traffic electronic filings.

4. Account Assignment. Upon receipt of the properly executed and signed User Agreement Form and Credit Card Authorization Form at the Clerk of Court’s office, the Clerk of Courts shall set up an electronic filer user account and assign a user-id and initial password to be used for electronically filing documents. Electronic filers using third party electronic filing providers will not be assigned a user-id or password and will not be required to maintain a copy cost account.

5. Hours of Operation. Electronic filings may be submitted at any time. The electronically filed document will be considered filed as of the date and time that the receiving device of the Clerk of Courts received the entire transmission. All electronically filed documents shall receive a confirmation date and time acknowledgement.

6. Document Format. Documents submitted must be in a digitized format specified by the Clerk of Courts as set forth in the online Guide to Electronic Filing.

7. Fees. Normal filing fees, case deposits and copy costs will be collected via user credit card at the time the filing is processed by the Clerk of Courts. Filings made using third party electronic filing providers will be charged fees, case deposits and copy costs via credit card at the time the filing is processed by the Clerk of Courts.

8. Filing Acceptance or Rejection Cycle. A confirmation number will be assigned to each filing when it is received in its entirety by the receiving device of the Clerk of Courts. The confirmation number and the date and time of the filing will be displayed on the screen of the filer’s computer upon successful transmission of the filing. Filers using third-party electronic filing providers will not have the confirmation number and date and time of filing displayed on the screen, but must wait for the confirmation electronic mail message from the Clerk of Courts to obtain the confirmation number and date and time of filing. Upon successful processing of the filing by the Clerk of Courts, an electronic mail message containing the confirmation number and case number assigned, if any, will be sent to the filer. Filers will be notified via electronic mail if the filing is rejected for any reason. A rejected filing may be resubmitted via electronic mail to the Clerk of Courts in order to retain the original date and time of filing. Rejected filings which are resubmitted via electronic mail must be received by the Clerk of Courts within twenty-four (24) hours of the time that the rejection electronic mail message was sent by the Clerk of Courts in order to retain the original date and time of filing and confirmation number. A corrective filing may, however, be sent at a later time if the filer elects to do so, but after the twenty-four (24) hour period expires such a filing will be considered a new filing and the prior confirmation will have expired.

9. Electronic Filed Stamp. Upon successful completion of acceptance processing by the Clerk of Courts a document filed electronically will be electronically filed stamped. This stamp will include the date and time that the receiving device of the Clerk of Courts received the entire transmission as well as the confirmation number of the filing. A document electronically filed that is not successfully processed by the Clerk of Courts will not receive an electronically filed stamp but the filer will receive a rejection e-mail. (See Filing Acceptance or Rejection Cycle above.)

10. Disposition and Maintenance of Source Documents. A document electronically filed shall be accepted as the original filing, consistent with Ohio Revised CodeCivil Rule 5(E) and if the person filing electronically complies with all of the requirements set forth in this Local Rule. The person filing electronically need not file any copy with the Clerk of Courts but must maintain in his or her records, and have available for production on request by the Court, the Clerk of Courts or other counsel, the source copy of any document electronically filed. The filer must maintain this source document until the final disposition of the case and through any Notice of Appeal or, if appealed, appeal period.

11. Public Method of Access to Electronically Filed Public Documents. Members of the public can obtain copies of or review electronically filed documents in the same manner as documents filed on paper. Public access to electronically filed public documents will be available via the Internet web site of the Clerk of Courts as soon as the Clerk of Courts has processed the document. If Internet web site access is unavailable or is not provided by the Clerk of Courts, or if the Clerk of Courts is prohibited by the Court or by any law from making the document available via the Internet web site, the document will be available at one or more offices of the Clerk of Courts, either by computer terminal or in paper form in the case jacket or on microfilm. However, if a document or case record is sealed or expunged it is unavailable for public disclosure.

12. Operating Procedures and Instructions. The Clerk of Courts is authorized to prepare and maintain operating procedures and instructions for electronic filing.

Effective Date of Rules

These local rules shall be effective 12:01 a.m. on January 1, 1998, and shall govern all proceedings in actions brought after they take effect and also further proceedings in pending actions, except to the extent that, in the opinion of the court, their application in a particular action pending on the effective date would not be feasible or would work an injustice, in which event, the former procedure applies. [Rule XVIII (fee schedule) was amended effective 3/30/99.]

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