Complex Lit Blog

Attorney’s Violation of Ethical Rules in Disclosing Privileged Communications Is Irrelevant to the Communications’ Admissibility — Advice-of-Counsel Defense Waives Privilege Even If Defense Is Invalid

Am. Plastics Techs., Inc. v. Dymond Pharmcare Indus., Ltd., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 162716 (N.D. Ill. Dec. 4, 2015): Plaintiffs/Counter-Defendants American Plastics Technologies, Inc. and Rao Murukurthy ("Murukurthy") (collectively [*4] "Plaintiffs"), and Defendants/Counter-Plaintiffs Dymond Pharmc ...

Am. Plastics Techs., Inc. v. Dymond Pharmcare Indus., Ltd., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 162716 (N.D. Ill. Dec. 4, 2015): Plaintiffs/Counter-Defendants American Plastics Technologies, Inc. and Rao Murukurthy ("Murukurthy") (collectively [*4] "Plaintiffs"), and Defendants/Counter-Plaintiffs Dymond Pharmcare Industries, Ltd. ("Dymond") and Obong…

Judicial Notice of Internet Evidence — Document Posted on a Foreign or Domestic Official Website Is Presumptively Authentic If Government Sponsorship Can Be Verified by Visiting Website — Voluminous Length May Require Additional Proffer

Berry Plastics Corp. v. Intertape Polymer Corp., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 162609 (S.D. Ind. Dec. 4, 2015): Plaintiff, Berry Plastics Corporation, requests that the court take judicial notice of the European Patent Office ("EPO") patent opposition prosecution history of European Patent No. 1,056,584 pursuant to Federal Rules of ...

Rule 11 Sanctions — Baseless Objection to Class Action Settlement — Good Quote: Burying One’s Head in the Sand, in the Hope That a Judge Will Disregard an Adverse Decision by the Supreme Court, Is a Paradigm of Frivolous Litigation

In re Polyurethane Foam Antitrust Litig., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 156546 (N.D. Ohio Nov. 19, 2015): The Direct Purchaser Class moves for Rule 11 sanctions against Objector Michael Narkin (Doc. 1743), and Narkin moves for sanctions against Class Counsel (Doc. 1800). Sanctions are appropriate because Narkin is not a class ...

Lay Opinion Testimony Based on Hearsay Statements Made by Unidentified Individuals, Well Beyond Witness’s Personal Experience, Violates Rule 701 — Email Containing Hearsay That Is Relevant to State of Mind Only If Hearsay Is True Is Inadmissible

United States v. Lloyd, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 21056 (9th Cir. Dec. 4, 2015): Five defendants appeal their convictions or sentences for selling unregistered securities. The defendants worked for telemarketing "boiler rooms" in California and Florida, soliciting investments in partnerships to finance the production and distribu ...

Rule 11 — Failing, in Summary Judgment Opposition Brief, to Make Specific Arguments in Defense of Claims Subject to Rule 11 Motion Is Not Equivalent to Withdrawing Them Per Safe Harbor

Barrett-Bowie v. Select Portfolio Servicing, Inc., 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 20706 (5th Cir. Nov. 25, 2015): [Plaintiff’s counsel] appeal the district court's Rule 11 sanction order reprimanding them for submitting pleadings that contained factual allegations that Appellants knew were false. Because the district court did not abuse i ...

Twiqbal and Affirmative Defenses — Ninth Circuit Applies Fair-Notice Standard, Not Heightened Pleading Standard of Twombly and Iqbal, to Affirmative Defenses (Cases Are Split on the Issue)

Castellano v. Access premier Realty, Inc., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 158078 (E.D. Cal. Nov. 23, 2015): An affirmative defense is an "assertion of facts and arguments that, if true, will defeat the plaintiff's [ ] claim, even if all the allegations in the complaint are true." Black's Law Dictionary (10th ed. 2014). A cour ...

Diversity Jurisdiction — Supreme Court Has Granted Cert to Resolve Circuit Split as to Whether Citizenship of a Trust Is Determined by Citizenship of Controlling Trustees, Trust Beneficiaries or Some Combination of Both

WNWSR, LLC v. Chesapeake Energy Corp., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 159527 (S.D. Tex. Nov. 19, 2015): 5 The courts of appeals agree that the citizenship of a limited liability company is determined by the citizenship of the company's shareholders. Grupo Dataflux v. Atlas Glob. Grp., L.P., 541 U.S. 567, 585 n.1 (2004) (noting ...

30(b)(6) Testimony Binding Only in Sense It Can Be Used Against Organization — Testimony Can be Corrected, Explained or Supplemented — Entity Isn’t Bound to Whatever a Fairly-Prepared and Candid Deponent Happens to Recall

Keepers, Inc. v. Sidepockets, Inc., 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 20223 (2d Cir. Nov. 20, 2015): Plaintiff Keepers, Inc. ("Keepers") and defendant City of Milford, Connecticut ("Milford" or "the City") appeal and cross-appeal, respectively, from partial summary judgment awards to each party by the United States Di ...

Changes to Deposition Testimony — Circuit Split as to Whether Substantive Changes Allowed — In Some Circuits That Allow Substantive Changes, Sham Affidavit Rule Bars Contradiction, But Applies Only on Summary Jmt; Otherwise, Credibility Is for Jury

Arce v. Chi. Trans. Auth., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 159917 (N.D. Ill. Nov. 30, 2015): On June 29, 2015, Defendant Chicago Transit Authority (the "CTA") deposed Charlotte Arce, spouse of Plaintiff Israel Arce, based upon Plaintiff's Rule 26(a) disclosure that Mrs. Arce is a witness with relevant knowledge of ...

Arce v. Chi. Trans. Auth., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 159917 (N.D. Ill. Nov. 30, 2015): On June 29, 2015, Defendant Chicago Transit Authority (the "CTA") deposed Charlotte Arce, spouse of Plaintiff Israel Arce, based upon Plaintiff's Rule 26(a) disclosure that …

RICO — “Difficult, Though Not Impossible, to Certify a Class in a RICO Mail Fraud Case” — First Party Reliance Usually Means Individual Inquiry — Setting Sights Lower Could Work Using Generalized Proof — Potential Use of Regression Analyses

Sergeants Benevolent Ass’n Health & Welfare Fund v. Sanofi-Aventis U.S. LLP, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 19797 (2d Cir. Nov. 13, 2015 (2d Cir Nov. 13, 2015): Plaintiffs-Appellants are three health-benefit plans ("HBPs") that brought suit under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1961 et se ...

Sergeants Benevolent Ass’n Health & Welfare Fund v. Sanofi-Aventis U.S. LLP, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 19797 (2d Cir. Nov. 13, 2015 (2d Cir Nov. 13, 2015): Plaintiffs-Appellants are three health-benefit plans ("HBPs") that brought suit under the Racketeer Influenced and …

Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

Attorney’s Violation of Ethical Rules in Disclosing Privileged Communications Is Irrelevant to the Communications’ Admissibility — Advice-of-Counsel Defense Waives Privilege Even If Defense Is Invalid

Judicial Notice of Internet Evidence — Document Posted on a Foreign or Domestic Official Website Is Presumptively Authentic If Government Sponsorship Can Be Verified by Visiting Website — Voluminous Length May Require Additional Proffer

Rule 11 Sanctions — Baseless Objection to Class Action Settlement — Good Quote: Burying One’s Head in the Sand, in the Hope That a Judge Will Disregard an Adverse Decision by the Supreme Court, Is a Paradigm of Frivolous Litigation

Lay Opinion Testimony Based on Hearsay Statements Made by Unidentified Individuals, Well Beyond Witness’s Personal Experience, Violates Rule 701 — Email Containing Hearsay That Is Relevant to State of Mind Only If Hearsay Is True Is Inadmissible

Rule 11 — Failing, in Summary Judgment Opposition Brief, to Make Specific Arguments in Defense of Claims Subject to Rule 11 Motion Is Not Equivalent to Withdrawing Them Per Safe Harbor

Twiqbal and Affirmative Defenses — Ninth Circuit Applies Fair-Notice Standard, Not Heightened Pleading Standard of Twombly and Iqbal, to Affirmative Defenses (Cases Are Split on the Issue)

Diversity Jurisdiction — Supreme Court Has Granted Cert to Resolve Circuit Split as to Whether Citizenship of a Trust Is Determined by Citizenship of Controlling Trustees, Trust Beneficiaries or Some Combination of Both

30(b)(6) Testimony Binding Only in Sense It Can Be Used Against Organization — Testimony Can be Corrected, Explained or Supplemented — Entity Isn’t Bound to Whatever a Fairly-Prepared and Candid Deponent Happens to Recall

Changes to Deposition Testimony — Circuit Split as to Whether Substantive Changes Allowed — In Some Circuits That Allow Substantive Changes, Sham Affidavit Rule Bars Contradiction, But Applies Only on Summary Jmt; Otherwise, Credibility Is for Jury

RICO — “Difficult, Though Not Impossible, to Certify a Class in a RICO Mail Fraud Case” — First Party Reliance Usually Means Individual Inquiry — Setting Sights Lower Could Work Using Generalized Proof — Potential Use of Regression Analyses

Recent Posts

Sanctions: (1) Rule 11 Does Not Apply to Litigation Papers Initially Filed in State Court — Only Reaffirmance in Federal Court Post-Removal Is Subject to Sanction — (2) “The Fact That A Legal Theory Is A Long-Shot Does Not Necessarily Mean It Is Sanctionable” (Good Quote)

Supreme Court: Relief under Rule 60(b)(6) Requires Extraordinary Circumstances Even If It Is Invoked to Allow Amendment of The Complaint–Rule 15’s Liberal Approach to Amendment Does Not Change That (Reversing Second Circuit)

FRAP 38 Sanctions — Eleventh Circuit Generally Does Not Impose FRAP 38 Sanctions on Pro Se Litigants, But May Do So If They Have Persisted Despite Judicial Warnings of Frivolousness

Inherent Power Sanctions: No Dismissal with Prejudice If Lesser Sanctions Will Suffice — The Liberal Pleading Standard of Swierkiewicz “Is Still Good Law”

Statements in Briefs As Judicial Admissions

Supreme Court: TRO As Appealable Order — And District Court Inaction As Tantamount to Refusing An Injunction And Thus Appealable

“Slow-Playing Discovery” in Response to Court Order, Prejudicing Opponent, Violates Rule 37(b)(2)(A)

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