Key Insight: Plaintiff failed to comply with court order by making various misrepresentations about whether all original input files were produced and whether software program changed over time it was used; sanction in form of attorneys’ fees and costs warranted
Nature of Case: Construction litigation
Electronic Data Involved: Software program and input files used to make design calculations
Key Insight: Defendant allowed to amend its answer to include counterclaim for breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty based on revelations made in belatedly-produced email
Nature of Case: Breach of contract
Electronic Data Involved: Email
Key Insight: Plaintiff denied access to hard drives of computers acquired by defendant after alleged torts took place
Nature of Case: Tortious interference, misappropriation of trade secrets, defamation
Electronic Data Involved: Hard drives (to locate email)
Key Insight: Plaintiff’s ex parte motion to continue summary judgment and for additional discovery of defendant’s computer system denied where prior Rule 56(f) continuance had been granted and no showing was made of specific evidence expected to be elicited
Nature of Case: Insureds sued insurer for breach of covenant of good faith and fair dealing and related torts
Electronic Data Involved: Insurer’s claims-handling computer system
Key Insight: Court awarded non-party its costs of production, but ruled that non-party was not entitled, under either Tex. R. Civ. P. 205.3 or 176.7, to recover attorneys’ fees incurred in responding to subpoena, noting that non-party obtained legal advice to protect its own interests, not to facilitate compliance with subpoena
Nature of Case: Construction litigation
Electronic Data Involved: Electronic data
Key Insight: Court denied plaintiffs’ motion for sanctions stemming from defendants’ failure to disclose various relevant documents until after the close of fact discovery and plaintiffs’ expert disclosures, though defendants provided the material to their experts; instead, plaintiffs’ experts would be allowed to supplement their reports to address the belatedly-produced material
Nature of Case: Class action alleging violations of ERISA
Electronic Data Involved: Spreadsheets and reports
Key Insight: Since defendant had destroyed electronic records and failed to produce the very records that would provide evidence of its contacts within D.C., even after being ordered by court to do so, court denied defendant’s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction; court declined to impose any sanctions, but said plaintiff could bring a motion in the future
Nature of Case: Copyright infringement and related claims
Electronic Data Involved: Electronic information on servers
Key Insight: Plaintiff’s use of Cyberscrub data wiping software prior to court-ordered inspection of her computer and after agreeing on the record that she would not purge her hard drive or delete any documents, and her misrepresentations about age of hard drive, were not sufficiently egregious to warrant dismissal but did warrant an adverse inference instruction
Nature of Case: Sexual harassment and whistleblower claims by former employee
Electronic Data Involved: Hard drive of plaintiff’s personal computer
Key Insight: Plaintiffs’ motion to retrieve email granted; defendants required to re-search backup tapes using broader subject matter and time period, and to search email folders of any relevant individual in same manner
Nature of Case: ESOP plan participants sued employer and ESOP for breach of fiduciary duty and other wrongs
Electronic Data Involved: Email and other computerized data
Key Insight: Entry of default judgment on issue of liability and imposition of other discovery sanctions against insurer for failure to produce computer data and other discovery abuses was not an abuse of discretion
Nature of Case: Insurance coverage
Electronic Data Involved: Database
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