Rule 5A:37 - Appellate Settlement Conference in the Court of Appeals(a)Settlement Conference. - Upon motion or sua sponte, this Court may order counsel, and clients in appropriate cases, to participate in a settlement conference. An informal motion requesting a settlement conference may be filed at any time while the matter is on appeal and should state briefly why a settlement conference would be useful. The motion must state whether all parties concur. If a party objects, that party must file within 7 days a short response explaining the grounds for the objection. All motions and responses may be in letter format addressed to the clerk of this Court. If this Court orders a settlement conference, it will ordinarily be held by telephone conference call and, in the discretion of the settlement judge, may be held in person at a convenient location.(b)Settlement Judge. - A senior or retired appellate judge will conduct all settlement conferences at no cost to the litigants.(c)Excluded Cases. - No settlement conference will be conducted in appeals of criminal judgments or orders terminating parental rights or in any case arising under this Court's original jurisdiction.(d)Conferences. - Prior to participating in a settlement conference, all counsel must consult with their respective clients about settlement options and ask for express authority to settle within any parameters acceptable to the client. The settlement judge may conduct more than one conference if, in his discretion, he deems it advisable. During a conference, the settlement judge may consult ex parte with counsel, or with counsel and that counsel's client, but must not consult ex parte with any represented client without counsel's agreement.(e)Conference Orders. - A settlement conference, if ordered in a case, will not automatically affect any time deadline otherwise applicable. The settlement judge, however, may direct the clerk of this Court to enter orders tolling any non-mandatory time deadline before or after the deadline has passed. If any party advises the settlement judge that all or part of an appeal has been settled, the settlement judge will direct the parties to prepare and sign a settlement agreement setting forth all agreed-upon terms. Upon receiving a copy of the settlement agreement, the settlement judge must thereafter direct the clerk of this Court to enter an order dismissing with prejudice all or part of the appeal subject to the agreement.(f)Confidentiality. - The provisions of the settlement agreement will not be considered confidential except to the extent the agreement specifically requires it. No confidentiality provision, however, will prejudice any party's ability to seek judicial enforcement of a settlement agreement. In any case in which a settlement conference does not result in a settlement agreement, no statement made during a settlement conference or in motions requesting a settlement conference or responses to such motions may be disclosed by the settlement judge, the parties, or counsel to any (i) appellate judge who may be called upon to decide the merits of the appeal or any related appeal, or (ii) lower court judge who may be called upon to decide the merits of the case if remanded or the merits of any related case.(g)Cross-Appeals and Related Appeals. - Appeals and cross-appeals will ordinarily be addressed in a single settlement conference. At the discretion of the settlement judge, related appeals may be consolidated for settlement conference purposes. Amended by order dated April 30, 2010, effective 7/1/2010; amended by order dated September 3, 2020, effective 9/3/2020; amended by order dated November 23, 2020, effective 3/1/2021; amended by order dated April 1, 2021, effective 6/1/2021; amended by order dated November 1, 2021, effective 1/1/2022.