Many jurisdictions require a pretrial conference, which is a meeting of the judge and lawyers to discuss which matters should be presented to the jury, to review evidence and witnesses, to set a timetable, and to discuss the settlement of the case. After the initial complaint is filed, the clerk of court will send a notice to parties, usually to their respective attorneys' offices, informing them of the date and time to appear for the pretrial conference. There may be more than one such conference prior to the trial date.
