State Court Rejects Appeal of Discovery Order Requiring Production of “Broken” Computers
Law Office of Douglas T. Harris, Esq. v. Philadelphia Waterfront Partners, LP, 957 A.2d 1223, 2008 Pa. Super. 222 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2008)
In this case involving breach of fiduciary duty and related claims, plaintiff had requested the production of certain email and documents maintained on the computers of two individual defendants. When defendants failed to produce the requested material, plaintiff moved to compel. At the hearing on the motion, defense counsel informed the court that the two computers were inoperable and that technicians were currently working on the computers. The court pressed defense counsel for an explanation of how the computers were broken, and observed that plaintiff was entitled to the information that had been requested. When the court asked defense counsel what order it should enter, defense counsel responded: “We can produce the computers.” After the court entered its order, defendants appealed.