On August 1, 2018, Judge Beetlestone (E.D. Pa.) granted Defendants’ motion for sanctions based upon unequivocal evidence that Plaintiffs manipulated and fabricated emails material to the litigation. Although the Court imposed the drastic sanction of dismissing Plaintiffs’ complaint, the Court provided a detailed and instructive analysis supporting its ultimate conclusion. The Court’s analysis, addressed below, can be read in full
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The Perils of Self-Collection
“Self-collection” refers to the situation in which the custodians of information potentially relevant to a legal proceeding undertake to identify and collect that information on their own and provide the collected content to counsel.
The typical self-collection situation involves some limited instruction or oversight from counsel (in-house or outside). For example, outside counsel issues a litigation hold notice identifying various
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If Evidence in its Original Form Is No Longer Available – But a Copy of that Evidence Is – Are Spoliation Sanctions Appropriate?
In Barcroft Media, Ltd. et al. v. Coed Media Grp., LLC, No. 16-CV-7634 (JMF) (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 28, 2017), Plaintiffs – providers of entertainment-related photojournalism and owners of celebrity photographs – interposed various intellectual property claims against Defendant Coed Media Group, LLC (“CMG”). The claims related to the allegedly infringing use of certain celebrity photographs (the “Images”) on CMG’s pop
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Litigation Hold Notices Should Not Cloak the Recipient With Discretion Over What Documents to Preserve
In past blogs, I have discussed the importance of issuing a litigation hold notice (“Hold”), as soon as a litigation is reasonably anticipated. I have also written about various best practices when drafting one’s Hold. [See Practical Tips For an Effective Litigation Hold Notice and Your Litigation Hold Must be Generally Broad And Specifically Tailored]. In an effort
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Taylor Swift and the Java-Dump: An E-Discovery Tale
Mueller v. Swift, (D. Col. 2017) 2017 WL 2362137
Some opinions just have it all, and Mueller v. Swift does not disappoint! Indeed, in this lawsuit, Taylor Swift, the pop sensation who has been sweeping the nation, alleges she was the victim of sexual misconduct, assault, and battery.
What in the world do such allegations have to do with
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An Attorney Acting ‘With a Pure Heart and An Empty Head’ is Sanctioned for Spoliating Emails
According to the Complaint filed in Michael Distefano and Nicole Distefano v Law Offices of Barbara H. Katsos, PC and Barbara H. Katsos, Michael DiStefano and a non-party were owners of a limited liability company that was the franchisee of three Cold Stone Creamery Inc. ice cream parlors. In 2006, the three stores suffered financial difficulties due to an extended
Court’s Inherent Sanction Powers – Not Rule 37(e) – Govern when Relevant Information (ESI included) is Intentionally Deleted
In Hsueh v. N.Y. State Dep’t of Fin. Servs., (No. 15 Civ. 3401 [PAC], 2017 WL 1194706 [S.D.N.Y. Mar. 31, 2017]) the Southern District imposed spoliation sanctions (specifically, an adverse inference) on the plaintiff in a sexual harassment case, because of her intentional deletion of a recorded conversation relevant to her allegations. While the court deemed the recording ESI, it
Client’s Bad Behavior Imputed to Counsel – Both Get Sanctioned
In Arrowhead Capital Fin. Ltd. v. Seven Arts Entertainment, Inc. 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 126545 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 16, 2016), District Judge Katherine Polk Failla imposed significant sanctions upon both the Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) and the lawyer for defendant Seven Arts Entertainment Inc. (“SAE”).
Background
Arrowhead Capital Finance, Ltd. (“Arrowhead”) sued SAE in 2014 seeking to enforce a judgment
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E-Discovery Update: ESI Sanctions in Federal Court During 2016 (Well, through July)
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 37 (along with others — Rules 1, 16, 26 and 34) was amended, effective December 1, 2015.
The amendment to Rule 37(e) was intended, in part, to ensure practitioners/litigants were fully aware of their preservation obligations, to ensure a uniformity of sanctions imposed upon parties and practitioners who failed to preserve discoverable electronically stored information
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Failure to Preserve Emails Results in Sanctions
We all know that it can be damaging to one’s case if a party to a litigation fails to preserve relevant information. But when, exactly, does one’s duty to preserve (potentially relevant information) arise? And what type of sanctions are federal courts imposing under the amended federal rules for preservation failures?
When Does One’s Duty to Preserve Arise?
Different jurisdictions
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