Key Insight: When husband failed to produce, pursuant to subpoena, computer containing financial information at hearing, court allowed a computer technician to go to husband’s home to copy the hard drive, and suspended the hearing until a later date to allow review of the hard drive
Nature of Case: Divorce proceedings
Electronic Data Involved: Computer hard drive
Key Insight: Where husband consented to discovery of financial matters but resisted plaintiff’s broad request for access to all documents on all computers, court set out detailed protocol for the copying and review of computer data with oversight by court-appointed referee
Nature of Case: Divorce proceeding
Electronic Data Involved: Data on hard drives
Key Insight: Rule 56(f) continuance not warranted where it was uncontested that defendant had produced all relevant electronic entries in its personnel database, and even if other emails existed in computer archives as alleged, plaintiff made no showing necessary to warrant their retrieval at this late date at defendant’s expense nor had plaintiff volunteered to foot the bill for doing so
Nature of Case: Employment discrimination
Electronic Data Involved: Email and electronic entries in personnel database
Key Insight: Ninth circuit granted writ of mandamus reversing district court’s order compelling plaintiffs to produce their answers to law firm’s internet questionnaire; although questionnaire disclaimed any formation of an attorney-client relationship, it did not disclaim confidentiality, and, under California law, prospective clients’ communications with a view to obtaining legal services were covered by the attorney-client privilege
Nature of Case: Users of antidepressant sued manufacturer of drug
Electronic Data Involved: Law firm’s questionnaires regarding drug which were completed and submitted to the law firm on the internet
Key Insight: Finding that individual had stated cognizable defamation claim against anonymous author of offending email, court denied email author?s application to vacate order requiring internet service provider to disclose email account information
Nature of Case: Defamation claim based on offending email message
Electronic Data Involved: Email author identity
Key Insight: Where insurer, in course of attempting to comply with discovery order, realized it had no electronic mechanism to retrieve case files based on whether a class was certified, but it could sort files by amount expended, court modified discovery order because it would have inflicted a substantial burden upon the insurer and the information produced would almost certainly be irrelevant
Nature of Case: Park operator alleged insurer failed to provide adequate counsel to defend a class action discrimination suit
Electronic Data Involved: Case file data
Key Insight: Court ordered plaintiff to produce all materials that plaintiff’s counsel furnished to plaintiff’s testifying expert, regardless of privilege or claimed work product protection, including emails, summaries, spreadsheets and draft expert reports
Nature of Case: Employer sought to enforce restrictive covenants against former employees
Electronic Data Involved: Emails, spreadsheets, draft expert reports
Key Insight: District court did not abuse its discretion where, in course of discovery dispute, it ordered both parties to submit their copies of data to the district court’s Information Technology personnel to see if the material could be retrieved, and denied plaintiff’s motion to compel when court’s personnel had no problems retrieving the data
Nature of Case: Employment discrimination
Electronic Data Involved: Email and electronic documents
Key Insight: Court granted plaintiffs? motion to compel production of vehicle?s ?black box? where information sought was not available elsewhere and was necessary for expert analysis of airbag system despite defendants? arguments that data was irrelevant and unreliable and that retrieving the data would be unduly expensive because of need for technician to travel cross-country; regarding unreliability, court noted that a Daubert motion was not precluded in future
Nature of Case: Personal injury resulting from auto accident
Electronic Data Involved: Vehicle’s “black box”
Key Insight: Noting that a responding party “must cover the costs of gathering the requested item; not to cover the costs of reproduction absent a showing of good cause as to why the burden should be shifted,” court instructed plaintiff to provide hard copies of its website as defendant had requested, at defendant’s expense
Nature of Case: Copyright and trademark infringement
Electronic Data Involved: Website pages
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