Rosemary Higbee v. Sentry Insurance Company

TERENCE T. EVANS, Circuit Judge.

The district courts in this circuit have crowded dockets, and the judges presiding over those courts work very hard to keep their heads above water. To that end, district judges are wise to encourage settlements and to poke and prod reluctant parties to compromise, especially when their differences are not great and/or their claims or defenses are not airtight. See Pierce v. Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Ry., 65 F.3d 562, 572 (7th Cir.1995) (encouragement of voluntary settlements is an important federal policy). By the same token, judges must resist the…