§ 62.01 Pre-Trial Procedure; Formulating Issues

Codes > Missouri Supreme Court Rules > Rules of > Part I : Rule 62 > 62.01

62.01. Pre-Trial Procedure; Formulating Issues

    In any civil action, the court may in its discretion direct the attorneys for the parties to appear before it for a conference to consider:

    (1) The simplification of the issues;

    (2) The necessity or desirability of amendments to the pleadings;

    (3) The possibility of obtaining admissions of fact and of documents which will avoid unnecessary proof;

    (4) The limitation of the number of expert witnesses;

    (5) The advisability of a preliminary reference of issues to a master for findings to be used as evidence when the trial is to be by jury;

    (6) Such other matters as may aid in the disposition of the action.

    The court shall make an order which recites the action taken at the conference, the amendments allowed to the pleadings, and the agreements made by the parties as to any of the matters considered, and which limits the issues for trial to those not disposed of by admissions or agreements of counsel; and such order when entered controls the subsequent course of the civil action, unless modified at the trial to prevent manifest injustice. The court in its discretion may establish by rule a pre-trial calendar on which civil actions may be placed for consideration as above provided and may either confine the calendar to jury actions or to non-jury actions or extend it to all civil actions.