Key Insight: Court denied plaintiff’s request for forensic search of former employer’s information systems where plaintiff offered no credible evidence that defendants were unwilling to produce computer-generated documents or that defendants had withheld relevant information
Nature of Case: Wrongful termination, race discrimination
Electronic Data Involved: Email
Key Insight: Plaintiff was not entitled to protective order delaying, until after key depositions were taken, production of tape recording of message left by defendant’s representative on plaintiff’s home answering machine, since tape constituted substantive evidence and was not mere impeachment evidence, and issues of fairness weighed in favor of production
Nature of Case: Debtor alleged violations of Fair Debt Collection Practices Act
Electronic Data Involved: Tape recording of message left on answering machine
Key Insight: No abuse of discretion to deny mother’s request to conduct forensic examination of father’s computer; although mother alleged that computer contained pornography, there was no evidence the child had seen it and it would be impossible to definitively attribute the pornography to father, since other adults used the computer and certain components were salvaged from other computers
Nature of Case: Mother sought to require supervision of child’s visits with father
Electronic Data Involved: Computer hard drive
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: Court denied plaintiff’s motion to compel defendants to allow experts to perform physical inspection of their computer equipment and files, since full disclosure of email had been provided by defendants and inspection was likely to be unduly burdensome
Nature of Case: Copyright infringement
Electronic Data Involved: Defendant’s computer equipment and files
Key Insight: Granting motion to compel contact list printed out from defendant’s contact management software program which was not timely included on defendant’s privilege log, court rejected “frivolous” argument that the contact list technically did not exist until it was printed: “For more than thirty years, Fed.R.Civ . P. 34(a) has included data stored on electronic media as being subject to a Rule 34 request. The fact that the data has not been printed out does not mean that the document does not exist. Indeed, if BH’s argument were meritorious, any party could avoid producing damaging documents through the simple expedient of storing them on electronic media and never printing them out.”
Nature of Case: SEC enforcement action
Electronic Data Involved: Email, spreadsheets and contact list
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