Mealey's Discovery
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April 19, 2019
Motorola Denied Expanded Discovery In 2-Way Radio Trade Secret, Copyright Suit
CHICAGO — Stating that there has already been “enough discovery . . . to choke a horse” in a dispute over two-way radio technology between Motorola Solutions Inc. and a Chinese firm, an Illinois federal magistrate judge on April 15 denied Motorola’s motion to compel discovery related to a product that he found was outside the scope of the trade secret and copyright claims at issue (Motorola Solutions Inc. v. Hytera Communications Corp., et al., No. 1:17-cv-01973, N.D. Ill.; 20192019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 64005).
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April 19, 2019
Judge: DuPont May Depose Cancer Victim’s Wife, But Not Compel More Discovery
BUFFALO, N.Y. — A federal magistrate judge in New York on March 27 ruled that E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. could depose the wife of a man who claims that the company is liable for causing his cancer as a result of chemical exposure, but the judge said DuPont could not compel the production of more documents from the plaintiffs’ experts (James H. Sarkees, et al. v. E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company, et al., No. 17-651, W.D. N.Y., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 52200).
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April 15, 2019
Discovery Briefing Ordered In Lawsuit Over $11.4 Billion Bitcoin Fortune
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Following an April 11 discovery conference, a Florida federal magistrate judge in a paperless minute entry ordered the parties in a dispute over the ownership of a multibillion dollar bitcoin cache, which belonged to a deceased bitcoin miner, to submit further briefs addressing discovery disputes related to the production of documents and other items (Ira Kleiman, et al. v. Craig Wright, No. 9:18-cv-80176, S.D. Fla.).
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April 15, 2019
Retired Judge’s Opinion Testimony Excluded, May Be Prejudicial To Insurer
DETROIT — A Michigan federal judge on April 10 granted an insurer’s motion to exclude the opinion testimony of a retired judge who presided over an underlying personal injury suit that resulted in a $22.6 million verdict against the insureds because the retired judge’s testimony could be prejudicial to the insurer, which is defending itself against a bad faith claim asserted by the insureds (Reliable Transportation Specialists Inc., et al. v. Wausau Underwriters Insurance Co., No. 15-12954, E.D. Mich., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 61537).
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April 12, 2019
Apple Seeks Sanctions For Counsel That Quoted Sealed Documents During Hearing
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Citing what it calls willful behavior by two of the attorneys representing a putative class of iPhone users, Apple Inc. on April 9 asked a California federal court to sanction the counsel for quoting from documents that which were designated as confidential during discovery at a public hearing on a motion to dismiss the lawsuit alleging degraded performance in the plaintiffs’ mobile devices (In re: Apple Inc. Device Performance Litigation, No. 5:18-md-02827, N.D. Calif.).
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April 10, 2019
Judge Orders Discovery In UCL, CLRA Case, Dismisses Entity For Lack Of Jurisdiction
SAN FRANCISCO — A California federal judge on April 5 denied and granted motions to dismiss claims for violations of California’s unfair competition law (UCL) and other causes of action against cosmetic companies, ordering jurisdictional evidentiary discovery to determine whether one entity was mistakenly listed on another company’s website (Kari Miller, et al. v. Peter Thomas Roth, LLC, et al., No. 19-00698, N.D. Calif., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 59420).
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April 10, 2019
Judge Enjoins Pharmacist From Dissipating Funds Derived From Fraud Scheme
OKLAHOMA CITY — A pharmacist accused of submitting fraudulent bills to Medicare for prescriptions filled at two pharmacies he owned and operated was enjoined by a federal judge in Oklahoma March 26 from transferring or dissipating the more than $1 million he earned from the scheme (United States v. Jeffrey Scott Terry, No. 19-cv-250, W.D. Okla.).
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April 10, 2019
Insurer’s Subpoenas Partly Modified In Coverage Dispute Over Apartment Collapse
BALTIMORE — In an April 8 ruling, a Maryland federal magistrate judge granted in part two discovery motions by the owner of an apartment building at the center of an insurance coverage dispute, limiting the scope of an insurer’s subpoenas on the building owner’s engineering and accounting firms, deeming certain tax information and communications sought to be privileged and private (Jowite Ltd. Partnership v. Federal Insurance Co., No. 1:18-cv-02413, D. Md. 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 59726).
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April 10, 2019
Auto Insurer’s Communications With Insured Are Relevant To Bad Faith Claim
OCALA, Fla. — An auto insurer’s communications with its insured regarding a potential settlement of a suit filed against the insured following an auto accident are relevant to a bad faith claim alleged against the auto insurer by the underlying plaintiffs, a Florida federal magistrate judge said April 5 in partially granting the plaintiffs’ motion to compel (Yolanda Aldana, et al. v. Progressive American Insurance Co., No. 18-157, M.D. Fla., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 59015).
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April 9, 2019
Trade Group Asks High Court To Give ‘Confidential’ Ordinary Meaning In FOIA Suit
WASHINGTON, D.C. — In its April 5 merits reply brief, a food retailer trade association asks the U.S. Supreme Court to find that a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) exemption for confidential trade secret and financial information permits the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to withhold store-specific data from a FOIA request without having to establish that “substantial competitive harm” would occur from disclosure (Food Marketing Institute v. Argus Leader Media, No. 18-481, U.S. Sup.).
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April 9, 2019
Delaware Judge Orders Irish Firm To Produce Audit Data In Contract Dispute
WILMINGTON, Del. — At a March 11 discovery hearing, a Delaware judge granted in part a defendant’s motion to compel an Irish medical imaging company to produce performance audit data from its Dublin, Ireland, plant, while declining to order discovery of similar data from other third-party plants and suppliers, deeming it irrelevant to the parties’ contractual dispute (Guerbet Ireland Unlimited Co., et al. v. SpecGX LLC, No. N18C-05-159, Del. Super.).
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April 9, 2019
Alabama Majority: Court Erred In Denying Insurer’s Motion For Protective Order
MONTGOMERY, Ala. —A majority of the Alabama Supreme Court on April 5 held that a lower court exceeded its discretion when it disregarded the attorney-client privilege in a discovery dispute, vacating the lower court’s orders that denied an errors and omissions insurer’s motion for a protective order and directed the insurer to produce the materials for in camera inspection or discovery (Ex parte Alfa Insurance Corporation, et al., No. 1170804, Ala. Sup., 2019 Ala. LEXIS 30).
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April 9, 2019
Oracle May Conduct Discovery On Rimini’s Compliance With Injunction, Judge Rules
LAS VEGAS — At an April 4 hearing, a Nevada federal magistrate judge granted a motion by Oracle USA Inc. to conduct limited discovery into whether Rimini Street Inc. is complying with an injunction in a long-running software copyright infringement lawsuit (Oracle USA Inc., et al. v. Rimini Street Inc., et al., No. 2:10-cv-00106, D. Nev.).
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April 9, 2019
Judge Refuses To Suppress Possible Tax Fraud Evidence In Insurance Fraud Suit
SCRANTON, Pa. — A federal judge in Pennsylvania on March 25 denied a defendant’s motion to suppress the admission of a thumb drive that contains the identifying information of more than 400 people for the purpose of filing federal income tax returns, finding that federal law applies to the charges of insurance fraud and tax fraud against the man and that the warrant that was executed to obtain the drive was not overbroad (United States v. Frank J. Capozzi, No. 16cr347, M.D. Pa., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 55075).
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April 5, 2019
Judge: Donziger Not Entitled To Extension, Must Respond To Contempt Motions
NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York on April 4 ruled that Steven R. Donziger, the attorney who won an $18.5 billion judgment against Chevron Corp. in a court in Ecuador for injuries only to have it reversed, failed to show good cause for an extension of time to respond to Chevron’s motions against him for civil contempt, and he ordered Donziger to respond (Chevron Corporation v. Steven Donziger, No. 11-691, S.D. N.Y.).
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April 5, 2019
Federal Judge Refuses To Compel Production Of Insured’s Settlement Agreement
CHICAGO — An Illinois federal judge on April 3 denied a managed care organization errors and omissions liability excess insurer’s motion to compel production of an insured’s settlement with its primary insurer in a coverage dispute arising from underlying putative antitrust class actions brought against the insured, finding that the settlement agreement’s relevance is “speculative” (Homeland Insurance Company Of New York v. Health Care Service Corporation, et al., No. 18-6306, N.D. Ill., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 56877).
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April 4, 2019
New York Court Grants Testing Of Plaintiff’s Asbestos-Talc Samples
NEW YORK — A consumer talc company is entitled to perform additional testing on the same samples used by plaintiff’s expert William Longo when he found the presence of asbestos, a New York justice confirmed March 20 in adopting a special master’s recommendation (Kim Young v. Avon Products Inc., et al., No. 190383/2016, N.Y. Sup., New York Co., 2019 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1046).
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April 3, 2019
Protective Order Issued By Judge In Breach Of Contract Case Against Reinsurer
DETROIT — In an insurer’s breach of contract case against a reinsurer over reinsurance billings for asbestos claims, a Michigan federal judge on April 1 issued a stipulated confidentiality agreement and protective order regarding confidential proprietary or trade secret information and information about insureds, including health in connection with their alleged asbestos exposure (Amerisure Mutual Insurance Co. v. Transatlantic Reinsurance Co., No. 18-11966, E.D. Mich.).
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April 3, 2019
Government To Participate As Amicus In Oral Arguments In FOIA Exemption Dispute
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on April 1 granted a motion by the U.S. solicitor general to participate in upcoming oral arguments over the trade secrets and confidential information exemption to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), giving the government 10 minutes to argue as amicus curiae in support of a food retailer trade group opposing the release of certain store-specific data in response to an FOIA request (Food Marketing Institute v. Argus Leader Media, No. 18-481, U.S. Sup.).
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April 1, 2019
Panel Conditionally Grants Insurer’s Mandamus Petition In Hurricane Harvey Dispute
BEAUMONT, Texas — A Texas appeals panel on March 28 conditionally granted an insurer’s petition for writ of mandamus challenging a lower court’s discovery order in a Hurricane Harvey coverage dispute, finding that the lower court abused its discretion by not limiting discovery to relevant evidence and ordering discovery that was beyond that discoverable under Texas law (In Re Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, No. 09-18-00446, Texas App., 9th Dist., 2019 Tex. App. LEXIS 2461).