Motion for Sanctions – Page 123 – Electronic Discovery Law

Munshani v. Signal Lake Venture Fund II, LP, 805 N.E.2d 998 (Mass. App. Ct. 2004)

Dec 01 2004

Key Insight: Dismissal of complaint was appropriate sanction for fraud on the court consisting of plaintiff’s forging email, swearing to its authenticity, and continuing to insist on its authenticity while independent computer expert investigated the matter and ultimately concluded the email was fabricated; plaintiff ordered to pay costs and fees of expert and defendants’ attorney’s fees and costs related to discovery of the fraud

Nature of Case: Breach of contract

Electronic Data Involved: Forged email

United States v. Philip Morris USA Inc., 327 F. Supp. 2d 21 (D.D.C. 2004)

Dec 01 2004

Key Insight: Finding it “astounding” that defendant’s employees failed to follow court’s preservation order and defendant’s own document retention policies, court rejected plaintiff’s request for adverse inference but imposed monetary sanction of $2,750,000 and barred testimony from at least 11 witnesses who failed to comply with defendant’s own internal document retention program

Nature of Case: Tobacco litigation

Electronic Data Involved: Email

Century ML-Cable Corp. v. Carrillo, 43 F. Supp. 2d 176 (D.P.R. 1998)

Dec 01 2004

Key Insight: Default judgment entered against defendant and attorneys’ fees awarded to plaintiff, pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 37, for defendant’s willful and intentional destruction of laptop presumably containing crucial evidence of defendant’s decoder key modification programs, sale records and customer lists

Nature of Case: Cable TV provider sued businessman for cable TV theft

Electronic Data Involved: Laptop

Inst. for Motivational Living, Inc. v. Doulos Inst. for Strategic Consulting, Inc., 2004 WL 2241745 (3rd Cir. Oct. 5, 2004) (Unpublished)

Dec 01 2004

Key Insight: Appellate court ruled that trial court did not err in awarding sanctions and finding defendant in civil contempt where, moments before he signed settlement agreement and in violation of discovery preservation order, defendant deleted files from laptop that was to be returned to plaintiff; however, case would be remanded so that trial court could determine what amount of attorneys’ fees fairly reflect compensation for defendant’s contumacious conduct

Nature of Case: Copyright and trademark infringement, misappropriation of trade secrets

Electronic Data Involved: Files stored on laptop computer

Nat’l Assoc. of Radiation Survivors v. Turnage, 115 F.R.D. 543 (N.D. Cal. 1987)

Dec 01 2004

Key Insight: Failure to produce computer data and other discovery abuses warranted imposition of monetary sanctions against defendant ($105,000 paid to plaintiffs and $15,000 paid to clerk of court “for the unnecessary consumption of the court’s time and resources”) and appointment of special master at defendant’s expense for purpose of monitoring its compliance with all further discovery

Nature of Case: Class action brought by veterans for alleged exposure to radiation during service with armed forces

Electronic Data Involved: Two V.A. computer systems (databases)

Weaver v. Zenimax Media, Inc., 2004 WL 2755852 (Md. Cir. Ct. Sept. 3, 2004)

Dec 01 2004

Key Insight: Exercising its inherent authority to safeguard the integrity of its judicial process, court granted defendants’ motion for sanctions and dismissed the complaint due to plaintiff’s discovery abuses and “civil vigilantism” which began during the course of his employment and prior to filing suit

Nature of Case: Wrongful discharge

Electronic Data Involved: Illicit incursions into the offices, computers, and email accounts of executives of defendant

Cobell v. Norton, 206 F.R.D. 324 (D.D.C. 2002)

Dec 01 2004

Key Insight: Government’s motion for “protective order clarifying that it may produce email in response to discovery requests by producing from paper records of email messages rather than from backup tapes and may overwrite backup tapes in accordance with Departmental directives” denied as inappropriate given history of dispute; plaintiffs awarded attorneys’ fees and costs associated with motion

Nature of Case: Suit against the government alleging mismanagement of Indian trust funds

Electronic Data Involved: Email stored on backup tapes

Invision Media Communications, Inc. v. Fed. Ins. Co., 2004 WL 396037 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 2, 2004)

Dec 01 2004

Key Insight: Plaintiff?s discovery misconduct, including disregard of discovery obligations, misleading statements regarding existence and location of evidence and failure to make reasonable inquiries, warranted sanctions in the form of costs and reasonable attorneys? fees expended by defendant in connection with sanctions motion and certain discovery events

Nature of Case: Insurance coverage

Electronic Data Involved: Email and hard drives

Nutrition Mgmt. v. Harborside Healthcare Corp., 2004 WL 887401 (E.D. Pa. Mar. 19, 2004)

Dec 01 2004

Key Insight: Court denied plaintiff’s motion in limine to preclude testimony, which was based on speculation that email had been destroyed, since defendants produced sworn testimony that all relevant emails were produced, and legitimate reason for erasing some emails “was simply a function of cleaning the junk mail and other clutter from the computer software and disk storage space”

Nature of Case: Breach of contract and tort claims

Electronic Data Involved: Email

William T. Thompson Co. v. Gen. Nutrition Corp., Inc., 593 F. Supp. 1443 (C.D. Cal. 1984)

Dec 01 2004

Key Insight: Defendant’s discovery abuse and destruction of evidence warranted monetary sanctions and default judgment

Nature of Case: Antitrust

Electronic Data Involved: Sales and inventory data

Tag:Motion for Sanctions