By Reginald H. Howe www.GoldenSextant.com March 9, 2001 Because there is some confusion over what is scheduled to happen in U.S. District Court in Boston on March 15, and also because all parties to the case have filed a joint motion with the court to establish a slightly modified schedule, I am providing this status report, which also should help to reduce somewhat my e-mail traffic. The normal rules of procedure in federal district courts require a defendant to file a written response to a complaint within a certain time, which may vary depending on the type of defendant (e.g., domestic, foreign, government) and the manner of service. Generally speaking, these responses may be of two types: 1) an answer to the complaint, addressing by numbered paragraph each of its allegations, and raising any other defenses or counterclaims; or 2) a motion to dismiss, raising legal defenses that would prevent the court from granting any relief, even assuming that the factual allegations of the complaint are true. Defendants who file motions to dismiss are not required to file answers until after their motions to dismiss are heard and determined. A motion to dismiss must be accompanied at the time of filing by a brief supporting the motion and citing the legal authorities therefore. When a motion to dismiss is filed, the plaintiff is allowed time to file an opposition statement containing reasons why the motion should not be allowed, why the defendant should be required to answer, and why the the case should be allowed to proceed. It is quite normal for defendants in complex cases to request extensions of time to respond, and just as normal for plaintiffs to assent to these requests. This week all parties in my case, including me, filed a joint motion with the court requesting that the various defendants be allowed until the following dates to file their responses: March 15 for the Secretary of the Treasury; March 30 for all other defendants except William J. McDonough; and April 10 for Mr. McDonough. In addition, the joint motion requests that the plaintiff be allowed until April 30 to file his oppositions to any motions to dismiss or to other defensive motions filed by the defendants pursuant to the agreed schedule. It is my expectation based on discussions with the attorneys for the various defendants that all of them are planning to file motions to dismiss. Typically, after the filing of motions to dismiss and the oppositions thereto, the court will set a hearing date for oral argument on the motions. At the hearing, the court may rule on the motions, or parts thereof, from the bench, but normally, especially in a complex case, the court will take the motions under advisement and issue a written ruling and opinion later. Courts control their own schedules, which are affected by many different considerations, so it is not possible to predict with much precision likely dates for a hearing or a ruling. However, I will continue to post periodic status reports as appropriate, and I am working on arrangements to make available online all significant court filings. In any event, my own oppositions will be posted at www.GoldenSextant.com, as will notice of any important court hearings. -END- Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/