Joseph Hage Aaronson

Hamas Website Authentication by Circumstantial Evidence: Governments’ Reliance on Site as Authentic, Language and Facts Posted, Exclusive Interviews with Nonpublic Personal Details, Official Seals / Watermarks — Website Video Authentication

Linde v Arab Bank, PLC, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 45903 (E.D.N.Y. April 8, 2015): A. Authentication Generally Federal Rule of Evidence 901 "does not erect a particularly high hurdle" for authenticating evidence. United States v. Dhinsa, 243 F.3d 635, 658…

RICO — Dismissal for Untimeliness Unusual: Complaint Needn’t Anticipate/Defeat Affirmative Defenses — Waiver of Argument Not Presented Below: Nuances May Differ — No Equitable Tolling If No Investigation at All — Good Quotes

Sidney Hillman Health Ctr. of Rochester v. Abbott Labs., Inc., 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 5974 (7th Cir. April 13, 2015): Appellants are a group of multi-employer benefit funds challenging the dismissal of their putative class action alleging that Abbott Laboratories,…

Class Actions — May a Court Certify a Class to Resolve a Specific Issue when the Whole Cause of Action Isn’t Certifiable? Circuit Split

Jacks v. DirectSat USA, LLC, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 28881 (N.D. Ill. Mar. 10, 2015): II. Partial Certification Plaintiffs request, as an alternative to denying DirectSat's motion for decertification, that a class be certified as to liability issues pursuant to…

Party’s Statements on Its Own Website Are Business Records and Admissions

CA, Inc. v. New Relic, Inc., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 46438 (E.D.N.Y. Apr. 8, 2015): In this patent infringement action, plaintiff CA, Inc. ("CA") alleges that defendant New Relic, Inc. ("New Relic") has infringed three patents which deal with monitoring…

Texted Photographs — Authenticated by Testimony from Recipient Sufficient to Authenticate Text Exchange with Purported Sender Plus Testimony Exhibit Is a Fair and Accurate Depiction of Photo Received from Sender

Peña v. State, 2015 Tex. App. LEXIS 3710 (Tex. App. April 15, 2015): Tanya testified regarding her text message exchanges with an individual she knew as Alejandro Peña. The interaction between Tanya and Peña began accidently; Tanya sent a text…

Are the Costs of Demonstrative Exhibits Used with Experts Taxable under 28 U.S.C. § 1920(4) as Exemplification Costs? Case Law Split

Geiss v. Target Corp., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 47841 (D.N.J. April 13, 2015): 1. Fees for exemplification under § 1920(4) Defendant seeks fees for the enlargement and mounting of Plaintiff's medical records and charts and diagrams used at trial that…

Rule 11 — Actual Notice by Email Doesn’t Satisfy Safe Harbor Requirements — Finding of Meritless, Alone, Insufficient Basis for 1927 or Inherent Power Sanctions

Chong v. Chang, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 5381 (2d Cir. April 3, 2015): Michael K. Chong appeals from the judgment of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (Forrest , J.), granting appellees' motion for …

Email Authentication — Confirming Circumstances Beyond Sender’s Self-Identification Needed, Suffice to Authenticate Electronic Communications — Voicemails from Sender with Same Contents Plus The From Line of Email Suffice

Commonwealth v. Czubinski, 2015 Mass. App. Unpub. LEXIS 191 (Mass. Ct. App. Mar. 16, 2015): Following a jury trial in the District Court, the defendant, Theresa Czubinski, was convicted of one count of criminal harassment. She appeals, claiming error in …

Judicial Notice of Internet Evidence — No Judicial Notice of Website of Governmental Party Stating Fact Inconsistent With All Evidence before the Government Entity and Contrary to Its Own Findings of Fact (Website as Evidence Creator?)

Spokane Cnty. v. E. Wash. Growth Mgmt. Hearings Board, 2015 Wash. App. LEXIS 755 (Wash. Ct. App. April 9, 2015): We address once again the compliance of Spokane County with Washington's intractable Growth Management Act (GMA), chapter 36.70A RCW, this…

Diversity Jurisdiction — Last Domicile Not Lost until New One Acquired — Domicile Not Lost by Forcible Change in State of Residence — Meaning of Abuse of Discretion (6th Circuit)

Pitt Excavating, LLC v. Pitt, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 3044 (6th Cir. Feb. 25, 2015): This case concerns the question of whether a person's domicile is his new Tennessee apartment or his old Kentucky home. Plaintiff-Appellant Pitt Excavating, LLC…

Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

Hamas Website Authentication by Circumstantial Evidence: Governments’ Reliance on Site as Authentic, Language and Facts Posted, Exclusive Interviews with Nonpublic Personal Details, Official Seals / Watermarks — Website Video Authentication

RICO — Dismissal for Untimeliness Unusual: Complaint Needn’t Anticipate/Defeat Affirmative Defenses — Waiver of Argument Not Presented Below: Nuances May Differ — No Equitable Tolling If No Investigation at All — Good Quotes

Class Actions — May a Court Certify a Class to Resolve a Specific Issue when the Whole Cause of Action Isn’t Certifiable? Circuit Split

Party’s Statements on Its Own Website Are Business Records and Admissions

Texted Photographs — Authenticated by Testimony from Recipient Sufficient to Authenticate Text Exchange with Purported Sender Plus Testimony Exhibit Is a Fair and Accurate Depiction of Photo Received from Sender

Are the Costs of Demonstrative Exhibits Used with Experts Taxable under 28 U.S.C. § 1920(4) as Exemplification Costs? Case Law Split

Rule 11 — Actual Notice by Email Doesn’t Satisfy Safe Harbor Requirements — Finding of Meritless, Alone, Insufficient Basis for 1927 or Inherent Power Sanctions

Email Authentication — Confirming Circumstances Beyond Sender’s Self-Identification Needed, Suffice to Authenticate Electronic Communications — Voicemails from Sender with Same Contents Plus The From Line of Email Suffice

Judicial Notice of Internet Evidence — No Judicial Notice of Website of Governmental Party Stating Fact Inconsistent With All Evidence before the Government Entity and Contrary to Its Own Findings of Fact (Website as Evidence Creator?)

Diversity Jurisdiction — Last Domicile Not Lost until New One Acquired — Domicile Not Lost by Forcible Change in State of Residence — Meaning of Abuse of Discretion (6th Circuit)

Recent Articles

§ 1927 Sanctions — Must A Lawyer Who Unreasonably and Vexatiously Multiplies Federal Court Proceedings Be Acting “As An Attorney” When Committing the Misconduct To Be Subject to Sanction under § 1927?

Rule 37 Sanctions — Unfamiliarity With Litigation Process Does Not Excuse Intentional Disregard of Court Order — Also Affirming Rule 26(g) Sanctions on Clients and Counsel for False Representations That All Responsive Documents Had Been Produced

Supreme Court: Notice of Appeal Filed After The Original Deadline But Before Reopening by The District Court Is Timely — It Relates Forward to The Date of The Order Making The Appeal Possible — Second Notice of Appeal After Reopening Unnecessary

Rule 37 Default Judgment: Second Circuit’s Four-Factor Test for Imposing Defaults and Three-Factor Test for Lifting Them

RICO: Cover-Up Within Limitations Period of Untimely RICO Violation “Was Merely A Continuation” Of The Original Injury And Could Not Be Used “As A ‘Bootstrap’ To Salvage [The] Time-Barred Claims–Declining to Apply Pinkerton Doctrine to Civil RICO Claims

Inherent Power — Circumstantial Evidence — Fact That Bad Faith May Be Shown by Establishing That Conduct Was So Egregious It Was Necessarily Committed in Bad Faith Does Not Mean That Bad Faith Must Be The Sole Explanation for The Bad Conduct

RICO Causation: Testing Labs’ Misstatements As to Alcohol Tests’ Efficacy Not Communicated to Plaintiffs’ Employers Did Not Cause Plaintiffs’ Professional Harm

Rule 37(d) Sanctions — For Failure to Serve Answers, Objections, Or Written Response to Discovery Requests — Are Not Limited to Intentional Misconduct; Even Innocent Mistakes May Be Covered

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