Key Insight: Spoliation sanctions for failing to preserve the webpages in which the images were published.
Nature of Case: Intellectual Property infringement
Electronic Data Involved: Images, Webpages
Key Insight: Where Defendant?s use of an internal utility tool on the at-issue server resulted in all of the data thereon being overwritten but where the District Court Judge found ?credible? Defendant?s explanations that he did not believe the hard drives contained relevant information and where the ?unique facts? of the case, namely the focus on Defendant?s TOR Node – which ?routed information for other end users around the world? but did not contain Defendant?s personal data – contributed to the court?s disagreement with the Magistrate Judge?s finding of intent, the court adopted the Magistrate Judge?s finding of spoliation but declined to impose default judgement and instead concluded that an adverse inference was appropriate
Nature of Case: Copyright infringement
Electronic Data Involved: ESI
Key Insight: spoliation sanctions
Nature of Case: breach of contract
Electronic Data Involved: e-mails, electronic document
Keywords: spoliation, adverse inference, intent to deprive, 37(e)(2), prejudice 37(e)(1)
Key Insight: was there a duty to preserve, were reasonable steps taken to avoid loss of data, can lost data be restored or replaced, was other party prejudiced by loss
Nature of Case: employment law, intellectual property
Electronic Data Involved: unknown
Keywords: spoliation, intent to deprive, relevance of data, measures no greater than necessary to cure the prejudice
Key Insight: whether missing evidence is crucial to movant’s case, whether non-movant had intent to deprive
Nature of Case: employment discrimination
Electronic Data Involved: hard copy, email
Keywords: duty to preserve, litigation hold, permissible inference, bad faith
Key Insight: Party cannot use screenshots not disclosed in discovery to in support of summary judgment motion alleging electronic signature
Nature of Case: insurance coverage litigation
Electronic Data Involved: archived screenshots
Keywords: electronic signature, affirmative signature, meaningful offer, prepopulated
Key Insight: Plaintiff produced two versions of email (both dated before filing). Defendant argued one was fake and an attempt to bolster Plaintiff’s claim. Court deemed that dismissal was too harsh a sanction and denied dismissal sanction request.
Nature of Case: Family Medical Leave Act Violations
Electronic Data Involved: E-Mails
Keywords: Duplicate E-mail; Dismissal Sanction
Key Insight: failure to take reasonable steps to preserve data, prejudice to other party, intent to deprive
Nature of Case: personal injury
Electronic Data Involved: event recorder data: .dat file
Keywords: reasonable steps, adverse inference, relevance of data, event recorder, black box, laptop crash, prejudice, inferred intent to deprive
Key Insight: Plaintiff had kept a journal which was scanned and provided. Original Hard Copy was then destroyed. Judge granted motion for additional deposition time, but denied adverse inference instruction.
Nature of Case: Employment Discrimination; Wrongful Termination
Electronic Data Involved: Hard Copy of Scanned Journal
Keywords: Sanctions, Adverse Inference, Scanned Copy, Hard Copy
Key Insight: Defendant’s failure to preserve the relevant ESI.
Nature of Case: Motor vehicle accident
Electronic Data Involved: Electronic Data/Electronic Control Module (ECM) Vehicle Data Recorder/Black Box and associated data.
Keywords: Spoliation, ECM data
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