Key Insight: Phone Call was deleted by negligence. Court allowed short statement regarding spoliation to jury, but did not order an adverse inference instruction.
Nature of Case: Civil Rights; Wrongful Death
Electronic Data Involved: Recording of Phone Call
Keywords: Spoilation; Sanctions
Key Insight: Plaintiff’s failure to respond to discovery requests justified dismissal with prejudice and denial of motions for reconsideration.
Nature of Case: personal injury
Keywords: flagrant disregard, dismissal, compel discovery
Key Insight: spoliation sanctions
Nature of Case: bankruptcy proceeding
Electronic Data Involved: deleted electronic records
Keywords: spoliation, bad faith, inherent power to sanction, legal fees, intent to deprive
Key Insight: Sanctions were appropriate for a fraudulently edited email entered into evidence
Nature of Case: Judge removal
Electronic Data Involved: E-mails
Keywords: judges, superimposed, fraudulent
Key Insight: Defendant’s failure to preserve and produce ESI responsive to plantiffs’ discovery requests.
Nature of Case: unpaid wages and overtime claims collective action
Electronic Data Involved: deleted electronic records, undecipherable codes, mobile device data, text messages
Keywords: adverse inference instruction, unintelligible, mockery of the orderly administration of justice
Key Insight: A 16 minute speculative phone call to an attorney is not enough to create a duty to preserve, direct evidence of bad faith is also necessary
Nature of Case: Employee overtime wages
Electronic Data Involved: Deleted e-mails
Keywords: Spoliation, FLSA, overtime
Key Insight: Production of nearly 170 thousand documents containing almost 2.6 million pages (app. 72% of total production) weeks before depositions to start was not sanctionable as Plaintiff had fought to keep broad discovery requests.
Nature of Case: Inadequate and Substandard Care in State Facilities
Electronic Data Involved: Email and Documents
Keywords: Proportionality; Document “Dump”
Key Insight: Fabricated evidence justified sanction of dismissing case
Nature of Case: fraud, breach of contract
Electronic Data Involved: archived email
Keywords: spoliation, closely held corporation, fabricated emails
Key Insight: spoliation jury instructions
Nature of Case: misappropriation of trade secrets
Electronic Data Involved: deleted electronic records
Keywords: spoliation, abuse of discretion, adverse inference, permissive instruction
Key Insight: Attorney’s failure to check metadata for fraud was not sanctionable because it was reasonable to believe the client was telling the truth based on other facts
Nature of Case: Civil rights (police entry)
Electronic Data Involved: Digital photographs (with metadata)
Keywords: metadata, withdrawal, mental illness
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