Superior Court Amends Rule of Civil Procedure 73

June 02, 2025

On May 30 the District of Columbia Superior Court issued Promulgation Order 25-02 amending Superior Court Rule of Civil Procedure 73.

Subsection (a)(3) of the rule was amended to allow a finding of implied consent to a magistrate judge whenever a party fails to file an answer, if an answer is required, or a party fails otherwise to appear in an action. The revision also allows a party whose consent to a magistrate judge has been inferred to withdraw the consent on a finding of good cause.

Subsection (a)(4) was amended to clarify the process for withdrawing express consent to a magistrate judge and to delete the process for vacating a referral to a magistrate judge, a process that is not applicable in Superior Court. Additionally, new subsection (a)(5) clarifies that a party’s express or implied consent to a magistrate judge does not foreclose the party’s ability to make a timely jury demand or the court’s ability to grant a request for a jury trial.

The amendments take effect immediately.