Complex Lit Blog

Inherent Power Sanctions — Dismissal for Threatening Defendant and Magistrate Judge — No First Amendment Right to Threaten Violence

Czajkowski v. Richardson, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 27067 (10th Cir. Oct. 25, 2024) (unpublished): ...

Czajkowski v. Richardson, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 27067 (10th Cir. Oct. 25, 2024) (unpublished): ORDER AND JUDGMENT* Conrad J. Czajkowski appeals the district court’s dismissal with prejudice of his pro se action as a sanction for his abusive and …

RICO: Domestic Injury — Delivery of Fraudulently Non-Conforming Goods FOB Los Angeles for Shipment to China Means Injury Arose Domestically When Purchaser Took Title —Other Relevant Factors Include That The Non-Conforming Goods Were Sourced and Made in the U.S. and The Racketeering Activity (Mail/Wire Fraud) Occurred in, and Was Directed from, the United States — Irrelevant to Domestic Injury Inquiry Whether Property Is Tangible or Intangible — 7th Circuit’s “Injury-Felt” Test of Domestic Injury Rejected by Supreme Court — RICO Standing Requires Concrete Financial Loss, Not Merely Injury to Valuable Intangible Property Interest (9th Circuit)

Global Master Int’l Grp., Inc. v. Esmond Natural, Inc., 76 F.4th 1266 (9th Cir. 2023): Global Master Corporation, a Chinese company, seeks relief under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act for allegedly defective products purchased from California-based Esmond Natural, Inc. The district court held that Global Master Corporation failed to satisfy statu ...

RICO Causation: Parents of Children with Disabilities Deprived In-Person Education and Services during the Pandemic Were Not Causally Injured by Teachers’ False Assurances to Federal Authorities That IDEA-Complaint Policies Were in Place, Which Caused Funds to Issue But Not to the Benefit of the Disabled Children — Damages Too Indirect — Proper Plaintiff Is U.S. Government — Private Injunctive Relief Under RICO Uncertain in Third Circuit

Carmona v. N.J. Dep't of Educ., 2023 WL 5814677 (3d Cir. Sept. 8, 2023) (unpublished): OPINION* Plaintiff-Appellants are parents of children with disabilities in New Jersey who sued Def ...

Carmona v. N.J. Dep’t of Educ., 2023 WL 5814677 (3d Cir. Sept. 8, 2023) (unpublished): OPINION* Plaintiff-Appellants are parents of children with disabilities in New Jersey who sued Defendant-Appellees—the New Jersey Department of Education (“NJDOE”), the NJDOE Commissioner,…

Sanctions: Rule 37(b)(2) Dismissal — Sixth Circuit Factors

Kendrick v. Amazon.Com Servs., LLC, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 27411 (6th Cir. Oct. 28, 2 ...

Kendrick v. Amazon.Com Servs., LLC, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 27411 (6th Cir. Oct. 28, 2024) (unpublished): ORDER Rome Kendrick, Jr., proceeding pro se, appeals the district court’s dismissal of his employment-discrimination case against his former employer, Amazon.com Services, LLC (Amazon),…

Inherent Power Sanctions — Extrajudicial Misconduct: Sanctions Power Extends to Conduct Intended to Sabotage Court’s Ability to Adjudicate the Case Before It, Here, By Commencing State Court Actions Seeking to Enjoin the Federal Plaintiffs from Proceeding with Their Federal Litigation — Sanctions Fee Awards: The Factors Used For Calculating A Fee Award To A Prevailing Party Do Not Govern — Under Goodyear, the Relevant Inquiry Is Whether There Is A Sufficient Causal Link Between The Sanctioned Misconduct And The Fees Awarded

Keyes Law Firm, LLC v. Napoli, 120 F.4th 139 (4th Cir. 2024): *141 Na ...

Keyes Law Firm, LLC v. Napoli, 120 F.4th 139 (4th Cir. 2024): *141 Napoli Law contests the sanctions award that the District Court of Maryland imposed in light of the Napoli firm’s abuse of process in two lawsuits filed in …

RICO: Members of Association-in-Fact Enterprise Must Act with a Common Purpose—Mere Allegation That Various Defendants Agreed at Different Times to Engage in Various Fraudulent Schemes Does Not Plausibly Support the Essential Inference, That They Acted with s Sufficiently Common Purpose

Curtis v. Greenberg, 2023 WL 6324324 (2d Cir. Sept. 29, 2023) (unpublished): *1 UPON DUE CONSIDERATION, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that the judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED. Appellant Wilfred Robert Curtis, an attorney proceeding pro se, sued various attorneys and law firms unde ...

Curtis v. Greenberg, 2023 WL 6324324 (2d Cir. Sept. 29, 2023) (unpublished): *1 UPON DUE CONSIDERATION, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that the judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED. Appellant Wilfred Robert Curtis, an attorney proceeding …

RICO Causation: (1) State’s Misrepresentation to Federal Government That It Was Providing Plaintiffs with Mandated Special Education Did Not Cause Plaintiffs’ Injury Because The Failure to Provide The Education Was Not Caused by the Fraud on the Federal Government — (2) The Three Factors for Assessing RICO Causation — (3) Limits of the Second Circuit’s Decision in Alix v. McKinsey That Causation Can Be Established Where A Fraud On The Judiciary “Or Other Governmental Entity” Resulted In A Resource Going To Someone Less Deserving

Roe v. Healey, 78 F.4th 11 (1st Cir. 2023): Three children with disabilities and their parents sued the Governor of Massachusetts, the Commissioner of Schools for Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), and several school districts and their superintendents on behalf of a putative class, over the closure of in-person educ ...

Rule 41(b): Five Factors to Be Weighed in Deciding Whether Dismissal Is Appropriate (Second Circuit) — Is A Finding of Bad Faith or Fault Required if Dismissal Is Without Prejudice? — Undecided If Truly Without Prejudice But It Is Required If the Without Prejudice Dismissal Will Act as a Dismissal on the Merits (Here, Because of the Statute of Limitations) — Failure To Consider A Lesser Sanction Than Dismissal Is Generally An Abuse Of Discretion

Romano v. Laskowski, 2024 WL 4635227 (2d Cir. Oct. 31, 2024) (unpublished): *1 UPON DUE CONSIDERATION, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that the judgment of the district court is VACATED, and the case is REMANDED for further proceedings. Plaintiff-Appellant Anthony Romano (“Romano”) appeals ...

Romano v. Laskowski, 2024 WL 4635227 (2d Cir. Oct. 31, 2024) (unpublished): *1 UPON DUE CONSIDERATION, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that the judgment of the district court is VACATED, and the case is REMANDED for further proceedings.…

Spoliation Sanctions/Mootness: Stipulation Resolving “All Pending Discovery Disputes,” Which Are Enumerated, Does Not Moot Subsequent Sanctions Motion for ESI Spoliation — Postjudgment Sanctions Order Is Appealable When District Court Has Finally Disposed of Both Liability and Amount

Aquino v. Alexander Cap. LP, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 27660 (2d Cir. Oct. 31, 2024) (unpublished):

Aquino v. Alexander Cap. LP, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 27660 (2d Cir. Oct. 31, 2024) (unpublished): *1 UPON DUE CONSIDERATION, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that the judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED. Plaintiff-Counter-Defendant-Appellant John J. …

Rule 37 Default Judgment Sanction: (1) Default Judgment Appropriate Only As a Last Resort, When Less Drastic Sanctions Would Not Ensure Compliance with the Court’s Orders — (2) Default Judgment Sanction Requires Willful or Bad Faith Failure to Obey Discovery Order — (3) Fugitive Defendant’s Failure to Appear at Court-Ordered, Remote Deposition Despite Court Warning That Sanctions Could Follow Disobedience Warrants Default Judgment — (4) District Court Afforded Wide Discretion in Interpreting Its Own Orders — (5) Filing a Notice of Appeal from a Non-Appealable Order (Here, a Discovery Order) Does Not Deprive the District Court of Jurisdiction over the Case

Stansell v. Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, 2024 WL 4614859, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 27556 (11th Cir. Oct. 30, 2024): *1 This appeal is yet another chapter in a decade-long attempt by a number of plaintiffs to satisfy a 2010 default judgment in the sum of $318 million against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, colloquially referred to as th ...

Stansell v. Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, 2024 WL 4614859, 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 27556 (11th Cir. Oct. 30, 2024): *1 This appeal is yet another chapter in a decade-long attempt by a number of plaintiffs to satisfy a 2010 …

Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

Inherent Power Sanctions — Dismissal for Threatening Defendant and Magistrate Judge — No First Amendment Right to Threaten Violence

Sanctions: Rule 37(b)(2) Dismissal — Sixth Circuit Factors

RICO: Members of Association-in-Fact Enterprise Must Act with a Common Purpose—Mere Allegation That Various Defendants Agreed at Different Times to Engage in Various Fraudulent Schemes Does Not Plausibly Support the Essential Inference, That They Acted with s Sufficiently Common Purpose

Spoliation Sanctions/Mootness: Stipulation Resolving “All Pending Discovery Disputes,” Which Are Enumerated, Does Not Moot Subsequent Sanctions Motion for ESI Spoliation — Postjudgment Sanctions Order Is Appealable When District Court Has Finally Disposed of Both Liability and Amount

Recent Posts

RICO: Indirect Injury Unrecoverable — Indirect Purchaser Rule Imported from Antitrust

RICO: No Causation Where Harm Flowed Several Steps After the Fraudulent Acts — RICO Causation Same As Antitrust Causation

Sanctions vs. Automatic Stay: Imposition of Sanctions (Here, Inherent Power Sanctions) Is Subject to the Police Power Exception to the Automatic Stay in Bankruptcy

The Word “Include” May Be A Word of Limitation As Opposed to a Word of Enlargement, Depending on the Context

Spoliation/Sanctions: “A Party Does Not Spoliate Evidence When, Without Notice Of The Evidence’s Potential Relevance, It Destroys The Evidence According To Its Policy Or In The Normal Course Of Its Business” (Good Quote)

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