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16 Fed. Cts. L. Rev. 1 (2024)

handle is hein.journals/fecourtl16 and id is 1 raw text is: THE FEDERAL COURTS LAW REVIEW: Volume 16 2024 RULE 16(B)(4): IS GOOD CAUSE A GOOD THING? WHY I HATE SCHEDULING ORDERS Hon. Jeremiah J. McCarthy* INTRODU CTION ................................................................ . 1 I. THE GOOD CAUSE STANDARD ................................. 2 II. M IXED SIGNALS..........................................................3 III. CONSEQUENCES OF ENFORCEMENT ........................... 5 C ON CLU SION ..................................................................... . 7 INTRODUCTION Federal Rule of Civil Procedure (Rule) 16 requires courts to issue a scheduling order setting deadlines for the completion of various pretrial proceedings.1 Rule 16(b)(4) provides that the schedule set by the court may be modified only for good cause and with the judge's consent, but does not define what is meant by good cause. This article discusses the vastly different approaches which courts have taken in defining and applying the good cause * The Federal Courts Law Review is a publication of the Federal Magistrate Judges Association. Editing support is provided by the members of the Mississippi Law Journal. United States Magistrate Judge, Western District of New York. I wish to thank my legal assistants, Matthew Yusick and Joanna Dickinson, as well as my courtroom deputy clerk, Eric Glynn, for their assistance in the preparation of this article. 1 Editor's Note: Hereinafter, all citations to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure will follow this designation. 1