plaintiff ediscovery

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February 26, 2014

The Controversy of Federal Rule 37(e)

Would the Proposed Amendment Harm Plaintiff eDiscovery? As of February 18, 2014, the public comments to the proposed amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure are now closed (extended from the original deadline of the 15th). One particularity controversial proposed amendment is regarding Rule 37(e). Plaintiff trial attorneys and in-house corporate defense counsel are currently

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December 5, 2013

Defendant’s Excuses are Insufficient, Must Provide Electronic Documents with Metadata

In RPM Pizza, LLC v. Argonaut Great Central Insurance Company, No. 10-684-BAJ-SCR (Dist. Court, M.D. Louisiana Nov. 15, 2013), plaintiff RPM Pizza (doing business as Domino’s) sued defendant Argonaut for payment on an insurance claim. RPM Pizza was accused of violating the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and they expected Argonaut to provide defense costs under

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December 3, 2013

Plaintiffs Should Specify Exact Formats for Electronic Document Production

In Rick James, et al. v. UMG Recordings, Inc., No. 11-cv-01613-SI (MEJ) (Dist. Court, N.D. California Nov. 8, 2013), plaintiff, the estate of the late singer Rick James, alleges defendant UMG Recordings, Inc. underpays licensing royalties for digital downloads of recordings. The plaintiff eDiscovery requests sought Excel-versions of electronic documents from defendant calculating royalties, but

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December 1, 2013

Defendant Must Provide Electronic Documents in Reasonable Form

In Home Instead, Inc. v. Florance, No. 8:12CV264 (Dist. Court, D. Nebraska Nov. 8, 2013), plaintiff Home Away alleged defendant Florance violated a non-compete agreement, took trade secrets and used licensed marks of Home Away without permission. Florance operated a franchise under Home Away for fifteen years. During depositions, Florance testified to discarding evidence that

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November 29, 2013

Inadvertently Produced Email Threads Lead to Privlege Dispute

Inadvertent discovery disclosure is governed by Fed.R.Civ.Pro. 26. It is not entirely uncommon for a paralegal, support staff or even attorneys to mistakenly produce documents or electronic data that is protected by attorney-client privilege. However, when it does happen, it can easily lead to ongoing disputes over the production. One such case is Woodward v. Victory

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November 27, 2013

PDF Files Without Metadata: Acceptable Defense Production?

If a defense production is tendered as electronic data in PDF form, non-searchable and without metadata, does it meet the discovery requirements of Fed.R.Civ. Pro. 34? Or do plaintiffs have grounds to object and request an order of court compelling the production in native file format? This question is but one issue at hand in

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November 25, 2013

CD Disk OK When Discovery Request Fails to Specify ESI Format

If a CD disk is produced with electronic data in native format but counsel cannot open it on a laptop, does it fail to meet the requirements of electronically stored information in Federal Rule 26? That was the question in the Order on Duces Tecum Production dated November 12, 2013 in Benado v. Thyssenkrupp Logistics,

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November 18, 2013

Plaintiff Ex Parte Request for a Forensic Copy of Defendant Computer Granted

In the case Battelle Energy Alliance, LLC v. Southfork Security, Inc., 2013 WL 5637747 (D.Idaho), the district court granted an ex parte application for a temporary restraining order (TRO) against two named defendants, an individual and his employer. Plaintiff filed a petition for breach of contract and copyright infringement regarding computer software, alleging that its

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November 11, 2013

Is Forensic Imaging Warranted if Defendant Metadata Appears Inconsistent?

Metadata, or data about data, is becoming a real hot topic in the area of plaintiff electronic discovery law. In an eDiscovery order in the case Teledyne Instruments, Inc. v. Cairns, et al., Case No. 6:12-cv-854-Orl-28TBS (M.D.Fl. October 25, 2013), plaintiff sued defendant for breach of contract and other business torts arising from a former

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November 6, 2013

Court Orders Defense Production in Searchable Electronic Format with Metadata

In Kwan Software Engineering, Inc. v. Foray Technologies, LLC, No. C 12-03762 (N.D.Cal. October 1, 2013), plaintiff electronic discovery requests were sent and defendant responded by producing 28,786 documents on the discovery due date of August 20. After the deadline, defendants then produced 100,692 documents three weeks later, then 99,778 more a month after. All