Western District of Missouri Local Rules and Procedures

If you are litigating in federal court in western or central Missouri, the Western District of Missouri’s local rules sit on top of the Federal Rules of Civil and Criminal Procedure and control the details those national rules leave open: how you file, what you call your brief, how fast you must respond, and how your facts must be laid out. The full rulebook is published as a PDF on the court’s website and should be read alongside the federal rules before you file anything.¹

How the Rules Are Numbered

The civil local rules mirror the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Local Rule 3.1 corresponds to filing a complaint, Local Rule 56.1 corresponds to summary judgment, and so on. Criminal-only rules sit separately as Local Rules 99.0 through 99.10.² If you know the federal rule number, you can jump straight to its local counterpart to see what the district adds. The court updates the rules periodically, so pull a fresh copy before relying on a specific provision.

Starting a Civil Case

Local Rule 3.1 requires an attorney filing a complaint or an amended pleading that asserts a new claim to submit a civil cover sheet on the court’s prescribed form.² The court provides an electronic cover sheet tool that walks through the required fields.³ A missing or incomplete cover sheet will delay the case before a judge ever sees it.

Every filing must carry a signature block with the filer’s name, address, phone number, and email. The current fee for a new civil action is $405, paid through the electronic system at the time of filing.⁴

Electronic Filing Is Mandatory for Attorneys

Local Rule 5.1 requires every represented party to file through the court’s CM/ECF system. There is no paper option for attorneys absent exceptional circumstances. Unrepresented parties in civil cases are not required to use CM/ECF, though they may choose to; those filing on paper can submit by mail or in person at the clerk’s office.²

When an electronic filing goes through, the system generates a Notice of Electronic Filing. For anyone registered in CM/ECF, that notice counts as the equivalent of service by mail, so you do not need to separately serve the document on parties who receive the notification.

Redact Before You File

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 5.2 applies to every filing in the district, electronic or paper, and the clerk’s office will not review your documents for compliance. You are responsible for redacting personal identifiers before anything goes on the docket. The rule limits what you may include to:⁵

Social Security or taxpayer ID numbers: last four digits only.
Birth dates: year only.
Minors’ names: initials only.
Financial account numbers: last four digits only.

If you file an unredacted document without sealing it, you have waived the protection for your own information. When the court needs the full version, file it under seal alongside the redacted public copy.

Motions Require “Suggestions”

This district uses its own vocabulary for briefs. Under Local Rule 7.0, when you file a written motion you must also file “suggestions in support,” which is simply the brief setting out your facts and legal arguments.² A bare motion with no supporting suggestions is likely to be denied.

Response and Reply Deadlines

The opposing party has 14 days after the motion is filed to submit suggestions in opposition. For summary judgment motions, that window extends to 21 days. The moving party then has 14 days after the opposition is filed to submit reply suggestions.² Miss one of these and the court will usually rule on what is already in the record.

Page Limits and Oral Argument

Unless the court orders otherwise, supporting and opposing suggestions are capped at 15 pages each, and reply suggestions are capped at 10 pages. Exhibits, signature blocks, certificates of service, and statements of fact do not count toward those limits. Any brief longer than 10 pages must include a table of contents and table of authorities, and those tables also do not count against the cap.² If you want oral argument, mark the request clearly on the first page of the motion or suggestions. The court may grant it but is not required to.

Summary Judgment Under Local Rule 56.1

Local Rule 56.1 adds structure on top of Federal Rule 56 that catches people off guard. A party moving for summary judgment must open its supporting suggestions with a concise statement of uncontroverted material facts. Each fact goes in its own numbered paragraph with a citation to evidence that satisfies Federal Rule 56(c).⁶

The opposing party must respond to each numbered fact individually, either admitting it or controverting it with properly supported evidence. This is where the rule has teeth: any fact the opposing party does not specifically controvert is deemed admitted for purposes of the motion. If the opposition relies on additional facts, those also go in separately numbered paragraphs with citations, and the moving party’s reply follows the same format.⁶

When your suggestions reference a deposition, interrogatory answer, or admission, attach the relevant excerpt. A sloppy statement of facts is one of the fastest ways to lose a summary judgment motion you might otherwise have won.

The Mediation and Assessment Program

The district’s ADR program is called the Mediation and Assessment Program, or MAP. It is governed by a General Order rather than a numbered local rule, and it applies to most civil cases filed here.⁷ Cases are randomly assigned for ADR to a United States Magistrate Judge, a Bankruptcy Judge, the MAP Director, or an outside neutral mediator.

The initial ADR session must occur within 75 days after the parties’ Rule 26(f) conference, unless the MAP Director grants an extension. The General Order specifies who must attend: lead trial counsel, all named parties, an authorized insurance representative with full settlement authority if insurance is involved, and anyone else whose participation is needed to resolve the case. For cases assigned to an outside neutral in Category I, the parties must file a Designation of Neutral within 14 days of the Rule 26(f) meeting; if they cannot agree, a strike process narrows the field within seven days. Post-ADR status reports are due within 10 days of the session.⁸ Settlement is not required, but judges can impose sanctions for noncompliance with MAP deadlines.

Attorney Admission

To represent a client in the Western District of Missouri, an attorney must be admitted to the court’s bar. Admitted attorneys pay a $20 annual bar membership fee by January 31 each year to remain active.⁴ The court sends a January reminder email, but not receiving it does not excuse a late payment.⁹

Pro Hac Vice for Out-of-State Counsel

Out-of-state attorneys who are not members of the court’s bar may appear in a specific case through pro hac vice admission under Local Rule 83.5(g). The attorney must reside outside the district, be admitted to practice in at least one U.S. District Court, and be in good standing with every bar to which they belong.⁶ The process requires associating with an active member of this court’s bar, filing a written petition through CM/ECF, and paying a $100 admission fee.⁴

Local Rule 83.5 allows a limited initial appearance before the full application is complete, but the attorney must file the pro hac vice petition within 14 days. Failure to do so can result in the court removing the attorney from the case on its own initiative.⁶

What the Sponsoring Local Attorney Owes the Case

The sponsoring local attorney does more than lend a name to the petition. Even if the court excuses them from attending hearings, the local attorney remains an attorney of record, must continue accepting service of papers, and serves as the communication link between the court and the client. By applying for pro hac vice status, the visiting attorney also consents to the court’s disciplinary jurisdiction for any misconduct arising from the case.⁶

1
United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri. District Court Local Rules, ESI Principles, Procedures and Fees
2
United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri. Local Rules
3
United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri. Civil Cover Sheet Input Form
4
United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri. District Court Fee Schedule
5
Cornell Law School. Rule 5.2 Privacy Protection For Filings Made with the Court
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United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri. Local Rules
7
United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri. Mediation and Assessment Program
8
United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri. Mediation and Assessment Program General Order
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Western District of Missouri. Attorney Admissions