Questions about submitting proposed judgments and orders under UTCR 5.100? Wondering what notice you have to give to the other side?  Here is a handy-dandy reference from Multnomah County’s Family Law Court, published by the Professional Liability Fund.

While this was written with family law practitioners in mind, it’s a useful resource for any practitioner.  Here are a few highlights:

What does UTCR 5.100 require?

With few exceptions, you must provide notice to the other party before submitting a proposed order or judgment. If the other party is self-represented, you must also include notice of the timeframe that party has to object. If you receive objections, you must attempt to resolve them.  Additionally, every proposed order and judgment must contain a Certificate of Readiness telling the Judge why the document is ready for judicial signature and setting out the status of any objections received.

Why do we need UTCR 5.100?

There are three main reasons why proposed orders and judgments must be processed according to this rule:

1. Documents requiring judicial signature are routed separately through the court’s electronic case management system.  Segregating proposed orders and judgments is efficient and speeds up the signing process.
2. There is no system which allows the court to “hold” documents waiting for time periods to pass prior to judicial signature.
3. Pro se litigants need proper notice.

What is the notice period under UTCR 5.100?

“When the other side is represented, the drafter must wait 3 days, plus an additional 3, before submitting the document to court. When the other side is self-represented, the drafter must wait 7 days, plus an additional 3. The “3 extra days” requirement derives from ORCP 10B, which was modified by the 2015 Oregon Legislature to apply the 3-day extension to service by email, fax, and electronic service instead of just posted mail. UTCR 1.130 applies ORCP 10 to time periods set by the UTCRs.”

Other FAQs

Four pages of answers await here for practitioners.  Get answers to questions like:

• What are the situations where a statute or rule authorizes submission [of a proposed order] without notice?
• Can I combine my Certificate of Readiness with a Certificate of Service?
• Is the Certificate of Readiness filed as a separate document, or somehow incorporated into my proposed order of judgment?
• Does my Certificate of Readiness have to set out the address at which I served the other party with the copy of the proposed order/judgment?
• Does this rule apply to Motions to Postpone?

Keep in mind that in some instances UTCR 5.100 is either unclear or does not explicitly address all situations.  This makes the FAQ re UTCR 5.100 in Multnomah County Family Court a very valuable reference.

All Rights Reserved – Beverly Michaelis – 2018