List of requests before the first pre-trial hearing – this is what you should know

A list of requests before the first pre-trial is a new legal procedure, which came into effect in 2021. The purpose of a list of requests is to deal with a very common phenomenon in which the parties would submit countless requests to the court before the pre-trial, forcing the judge to invest a lot of time in deciding on these requests (some of which were sometimes clearly frivolous requests).

לאחר שנכנסו לתוקף תקנות סדר הדין האזרחי, תשע"ט – 2018 הצדדים לא רשאים יותר להגיש בקשות כלשהן (למעט חריגים בודדדים) לפני קדם המשפט הראשון אלא עליהם להגיש רשימה בעניין כל הבקשות על פי הפרוצדורה שתפורט בהמשך מאמר זה.

It is important to know – a party who does not submit a list of requests is considered to have waived the submission of requests, and will only be able to submit a request with the court's approval. For this reason, the importance of the request list should not be underestimated.

Sending a notification to the opposing party before submitting a list of requests

Before a party may submit a list of all of its requests to the court file, it must first contact the opposing party and notify them of its intention to submit the request as part of the list of requests. This matter is regulated in Rule 49(d), which states as follows:

(d) A party may not submit a request to the court or include it in the list unless he has contacted the opposing party at least seven days in advance and notified them of his intention to submit a request in the matter; the foregoing shall not apply to a request for temporary interim relief within the meaning of Regulation 97.

The purpose of this regulation is to get the parties to resolve the issue of the application between themselves, and without the involvement of the court (so as not to take up valuable judicial time from the court). Resolution of the issue between the parties before Pre-trial First, it will allow the judge to manage the proceedings more efficiently and advance the hearing, instead of dealing with matters that are not always of high importance.

Only if one of the parties has notified the opposing party that it intends to submit the application within the framework of the list, and the opposing party has not acted to make the application redundant, can the first party apply to the court and state the issue within the framework of the list of applications.

Filing a list of applications without first complying with the provisions of Regulation 49(d) may lead to the list of applications being disqualified or the list submitter being charged with legal costs. In practice, sometimes, the court actually hears the list of applications even if no prior notice was sent before filing it. The parties must always be on guard and object accordingly if the court allows one of the parties any procedural advantage, which it does not deserve, contrary to the provisions of the Civil Procedure Regulations.

Deadline for submitting a list of applications

In all Civil lawsuit or Financial claim (or even Class action lawsuit) to which the Civil Procedure Regulations apply, a list of all applications must be submitted Up to 20 days before the first pre-trialThis matter is stipulated in Regulation 49(c):

(third) A party shall submit a list indicating the requests that he requests the court to consider, no later than twenty days before the date set for the first pre-trial hearing.

Please note – Combining Rule 49(c) with Rule 49(d) reveals that you must Start acting no later than 27 days before the first pre-trialFirst, you must send a notice up to 27 days before the first pre-trial, to the opposing party, and specify that you intend to file a motion on the subject, allow the opposing party 7 days to respond, and only if they do not respond or do not comply with the demand can you submit the list of motions up to 20 days before the pre-trial.

In practice, even if the list of requests is submitted slightly late (and sometimes even significantly late), the court will still consider it.

What is specified in a request list?

A list of motions is not intended to detail all of the party's claims, but rather to summarize the motion on one page only. The response from the opposing party must also be detailed on one page only. This matter is stipulated in Rule 49(e):

(e) In the list of requests, the party shall indicate the type of request and briefly detail the subject matter of each request, including the claims he wishes to make in its context and the evidence he wishes to present in support of it, if any, and shall clarify when and in what format he wishes to discuss it; the details shall not exceed one page for each request; the opposing party may respond in writing to the list of requests within fourteen days of the date it was served on him, and the scope of the response shall not exceed one page for each request.

Please note – The list of all requests does not need to be supported by evidence, but it should specify what evidence you intend to attach to your request, and you are also required to specify in what format you wish to discuss the request (oral or written). Most often, the discussion of the list of requests will be conducted orally during the pre-trial, so you must appear for the hearing with the relevant evidence, so that you can present it to the judge hearing the case, if necessary.

The manner of examining a list of requests during the pre-trial phase is regulated by Rule 49(f), which states as follows:

At the pre-trial hearing, the court will determine the methods of hearing the motions listed in the motions list; the court may, among other things, order that certain motions be heard orally at the pre-trial hearing or at a later date it may direct, or that they be heard by way of a written motion, and it may give any other instruction regarding the procedures for hearing the motion, including regarding the scope of the argument, written or oral.

What happens if a specific request is not specified in the request list?

There are situations in which a party did not specify a particular request within the scope of his list of requests (whether by mistake, whether as a result of negligence, or because at that stage the request was not relevant in the party's opinion). The question arises whether in such a situation a party may submit the request at a later stage?

The answer to this question is found in Regulation 49(g), which states as follows:

A request that was not included in the list of requests may not be submitted at a later date except with the permission of the court, except for requests listed in paragraphs (1), (2) and (8) to (11) of sub-regulation (a) and requests submitted after a judgment has been rendered; such permission shall not be granted unless the court is satisfied that the request could not have been included in the list of requests or that the party has reasonable justification for his omission; if the court approves the submission of a request at a later date, it may order the manner in which it will be heard.

That is, if a request is not specified in the list of requests, it will not be possible to submit it at a later stage, except with the approval of the court, with the exception of these requests:

• בקשה לסעד זמני לפי פרק ט"ו;
• Request for preliminary evidence collection under Regulation 73;
• Request for disqualification of a judge under Regulation 173.
• A request to exempt a party or representative from appearing, whose appearance has been decided upon pursuant to Regulation 61(b);
• Request for approval of a compromise arrangement, mediation arrangement or approval of a settlement agreement.
• Request to suspend or cancel the appointment of an expert due to concerns about a conflict of interest under Regulation 16(f)(2) of the Experts Regulations.
• Applications after a judgment has been rendered.

Applications that can be submitted without any obligation to submit a list of applications

There are a limited number of motions that do not have to be listed in the motions list, and they will usually be filed well before the first pre-trial. This matter is regulated by Rule 49(b), which states:

Applications listed in paragraphs (3) to (7) of subregulation (a), They will be submitted no later than sixty days from the date of submission of the last statement of claims.

The final statement of claim is Reply letter (if actually submitted) or Defense (If the reply letter was not submitted).

The requests to which this regulation refers are:

• Request for stay of proceedings According to sections 5 or 6 of the Arbitration Law or on the basis of a foreign jurisdiction clause;
• Request for review by expert On behalf of the defendant and all related parties pursuant to Regulation 87;
• Request to join a party to the proceedings;
• Application to consolidate proceedings under Rule 40;
• Request to amend pleadings According to Chapter 7.

In conclusion

A list of motions is a relatively new procedural procedure that aims to reduce the heavy burden on the courts. The list of motions prevents the filing of numerous motions (some of which are frivolous motions) before the first pre-trial, and presents the judge with a summary of all the motions that the parties wish to hear, in a short document.

A list of requests requires strict adherence to deadlines. For example, before submitting a list of requests to the court file, you must first contact the opposing party and allow them at least 7 days to respond. The contact with the opposing party can be made, at the latest, up to 27 days before the first pre-trial.

A list of requests must be submitted no later than 20 days before Before the first trialA request not specified in the list cannot be raised at a later stage, except if approval is given by the court.

For success in any claim, it is advisable to seek the services of Claims lawyer experienced.

Frequently Asked Questions Regarding the Request List