Joseph Hage Aaronson

Inherent Power And Rule 37 Sanctions: No Dismissal for Perjury During Discovery On Non-Pivotal Issues Exposed on Cross – While Lack of Prejudice Not Dispositive, Judge May Properly Consider Effect of Misconduct on the Litigation

Patrick v. City of Chicago, 2020 WL 5362160 (7th Cir. Sept. 8, 2020): *1 Deon Patrick was convicted of double murder in 1995 and sentenced to life in prison. The convictions were vacated in 2014 and Patrick was released. The …

“Claim Splitting Is The Same As Res Judicata But With A Presumption Of A Final Judgment Instead Of An Actual Final Judgment” — No Rule 11 or Section 1927 Sanctions Where Law Complex (Does Denial Of A Motion For Leave To Amend A Complaint Constitute A Final Judgment On The Merits?) And Prior Decision Allowed Suit to Proceed

Church Joint Venture, L.P. v. Blasingame, 817 Fed.Appx. 142 (6th Cir. 2020): This appeal is the latest installment in the decade-long saga of the Blasingame family bankruptcy, which has involved two proceedings in the bankruptcy courts, two proceedings in the…

Rule 37: Dismissal “Is A Drastic Remedy That Should Be Imposed Only In Extreme Circumstances, Usually After Consideration Of Alternative, Less Drastic Sanctions” (2d Circuit)

Emamian v. Rockefeller Univ., 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 26788 (2d Cir. Aug. 19, 2020) (unpublished): SUMMARY ORDER UPON DUE CONSIDERATION, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that the judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED. Plaintiff-Appellant-Cross-Appellee Dr. Effat …

Mere Lack of Merit Not Enough – R. 11 Not Substitute for 12(b)(6)/56 — Court Needs Evidence Outside Complaint to Determine Factual Baselessness — Failure of Complaint to Put Defendant on Notice Not R 11 Violation — Forum Shopping/Improper Venue Not Enough for Dismissal, Just $

James v. Caterpillar, Inc., 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 26593 (6th Cir. Aug. 20, 2020) (unpublished): Courts typically reserve the “death penalty” sanction of dismissal with prejudice for the most egregious cases—those that involve, for example, willful misconduct, bad faith, fraud, …

R 37/Inherent Power (IHP): Decision Not to Sanction Reviewed for Abuse of Discretion — Clear and Convincing Evid for IHP — Rules 26/37 Primary Tools for Discovery Abuse, Not IHP — Fraud on Court: Judge May Leave Credibility Issue to Jury, Deny Sanction

Yukos Capital S.A.R.L. v. Feldman, 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 31909, 2020 WL 5948910 (2d Cir. Oct. 8, 2020):*1 This is a case about a disloyal employee, Daniel Feldman, the Defendant.1 After trial, a jury found that Feldman…

“Summary Judgment Is the Put Up or Shut Up Moment in a Lawsuit”

In re Delta Phones, Inc., 2005 WL 3542667 (N.D. Ill. Dec. 23, 2005): Summary judgment is the “put up or shut up moment in a lawsuit, when a party must show what evidence it has that would convince a…

R. 11 Sanctions: Dismissal with Prejudice and Attorney’s Fees for Pro Ses’ Persisting in Frivolous Venue and Service Arguments Despite Warnings from Court — No Protection from 41(b)

Khan v. Hemosphere Inc., 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 25726 (Fed. Cir. Aug. 13, 2020): These appeals arise from an action for patent infringement. Drs. Nazir Khan and Iftikhar Khan accused Hemosphere Inc., CryoLife Inc., and Merit Medical Systems, Inc., along …

R. 37 & Inherent Power (IHP) Sanctions: Permissive Adverse Inference OK Not Disclosing Witness After Reliance on Wit. Required (26(a)(1), (e)) —Plain Error Rare in Civil Case — IHP: Narrow Exception to Bad Faith Requirement

Higgs v. Costa Crociere S.P.A. Co., 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 25793 (11th Cir. Aug. 14, 2020): On Christmas Eve, 2014, Joyce Higgs tripped over a bucket in a dining area of the cruise ship Costa Luminosa and sustained serious injuries …

Rule 37 Sanctions: Until Amount of Attorney’s Fees Is Set, No Final Order Or Appellate Jurisdiction Exists, Even If Fee Award Is Only One Part of Larger Award, Including Default Judgment and Dismissal of Counterclaims

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, Inc. v. Dade City's Wild Things, Inc., 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 26042 (11th Cir. Aug. 17, 2020): BY THE COURT: The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, Inc.'s ("PETA") motion to dismiss…

Common Core Doctrine: Fees Awardable for Claims Involving Common Facts Or Related Legal Theories, Even If Only One Triggers Fee-Shifting — Noncompliance with Bankruptcy Court Order Sanctionable via Striking Pleading on Analogy to Rule 37(b)

Ridgeway v. Stryker Corp. (Matter of Ridgeway), 2020 WL 5226553 (5th Cir. Sept. 2, 2020): *1 For the last seven years, Christopher Martin Ridgeway and his former employer have waged scorched-earth lawfare against one another. Ridgeway has lost every battle…

Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

Inherent Power And Rule 37 Sanctions: No Dismissal for Perjury During Discovery On Non-Pivotal Issues Exposed on Cross – While Lack of Prejudice Not Dispositive, Judge May Properly Consider Effect of Misconduct on the Litigation

Rule 37: Dismissal “Is A Drastic Remedy That Should Be Imposed Only In Extreme Circumstances, Usually After Consideration Of Alternative, Less Drastic Sanctions” (2d Circuit)

Mere Lack of Merit Not Enough – R. 11 Not Substitute for 12(b)(6)/56 — Court Needs Evidence Outside Complaint to Determine Factual Baselessness — Failure of Complaint to Put Defendant on Notice Not R 11 Violation — Forum Shopping/Improper Venue Not Enough for Dismissal, Just $

R 37/Inherent Power (IHP): Decision Not to Sanction Reviewed for Abuse of Discretion — Clear and Convincing Evid for IHP — Rules 26/37 Primary Tools for Discovery Abuse, Not IHP — Fraud on Court: Judge May Leave Credibility Issue to Jury, Deny Sanction

“Summary Judgment Is the Put Up or Shut Up Moment in a Lawsuit”

R. 11 Sanctions: Dismissal with Prejudice and Attorney’s Fees for Pro Ses’ Persisting in Frivolous Venue and Service Arguments Despite Warnings from Court — No Protection from 41(b)

R. 37 & Inherent Power (IHP) Sanctions: Permissive Adverse Inference OK Not Disclosing Witness After Reliance on Wit. Required (26(a)(1), (e)) —Plain Error Rare in Civil Case — IHP: Narrow Exception to Bad Faith Requirement

Rule 37 Sanctions: Until Amount of Attorney’s Fees Is Set, No Final Order Or Appellate Jurisdiction Exists, Even If Fee Award Is Only One Part of Larger Award, Including Default Judgment and Dismissal of Counterclaims

Common Core Doctrine: Fees Awardable for Claims Involving Common Facts Or Related Legal Theories, Even If Only One Triggers Fee-Shifting — Noncompliance with Bankruptcy Court Order Sanctionable via Striking Pleading on Analogy to Rule 37(b)

Recent Articles

Rule 37(c)(1) Sanctions — Exclusion of Untimely Expert Report — Eighth Circuit’s 4-Factor Test

RICO: So Insubstantial A Claim As to Fail to Confer Subject Matter Jurisdiction

RICO: Distinctiveness Issues Most Likely to Appear When The Enterprise Is An Entity Capable of Being Sued, Like A Corporation

FRAP 38 Sanctions: Eleventh Circuit Generally Declines to Impose FRAP 38 Sanctions on Pro Se Appellants Absent a History of Frivolous Litigation or an Explicit Warning

Paul Weiss Did The Right Thing

RICO: Unsettled Whether Legal Expenses Constitute Injury to Business or Property in Ninth Circuit — Leave to Amend Must Be Granted Unless 1 or More of 5 Factors Is Present — Request for Judicial Notice of Wikipedia Articles Fails to Satisfy The Standards Fed. R. Evid. 201

FRAP 38 Sanctions Denied Without Prejudice for Lack of Separate Motion

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