Complex Lit Blog

Class Action Fairness Act — Parens Patriae Action Brought on Behalf of All State Citizens pursuant to State Statute Falls within CAFA’s General Public Exception and Must be Remanded to State Court

State ex rel. Hood v. AU Optronics Corp., 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 62089 (S.D. Miss. May 3, 2012): On March 25, 2011, the State of Mississippi filed a complaint in the Chancery Court of Hinds County alleging that the defendants had engaged in price-fixing in violation of the Mississippi Consumer Protection Act ("MCPA"), Miss. Code § 75-24 ...

Social Media — Chats and Texts Authenticated by One Party to Conversations Who Lacked Motive to Falsify — Corroborating Circumstances for Text Authentication

United States v Lundy, 2012 WL 1021795 (5th Cir. Mar. 28, 2012): In August 2006, Lundy was a 23 year old attending Delta State College in Cleveland, Mississippi and residing in Hollandale, Mississippi. Using the name ‘Jarious Johnson’, Lundy made contact with and engaged in a string of sexually laced text message and phone conversat ...

However Liberally Construed, Pro Se Complaint Must Still Contain Sufficient Facts to Satisfy Twiqbal

Pieczenik v. Bayer Corp., 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 5986 (Fed. Cir. Mar. 22, 2012) (RICO / copyright infringement action): In general, pro se litigants are held to a lesser standard than pleadings drafted by lawyers when determining whether a complaint should be dismissed for failure to state a claim. Hughes v. Rowe, 449 U.S. 5, 9-10 (1980). ...

Email Authentication Standards in New Hampshire (Applying Authentication Rule Identical to Fed.R.Evid. 901)

State v. Ruggiero, 163 N.H. 129, 35 A.3d 616 (2011): New Hampshire Rule of Evidence 901(a) provides that "[t]he requirement of authentication or identification as a condition precedent to admissibility is satisfied by evidence sufficient to support a finding that the matter in question is what its proponent claims." The proof necess ...

State v. Ruggiero, 163 N.H. 129, 35 A.3d 616 (2011): New Hampshire Rule of Evidence 901(a) provides that “[t]he requirement of authentication or identification as a condition precedent to admissibility is satisfied by evidence sufficient to support a finding that…

Foreign Government Is Not a “Person” within 28 U.S.C. § 1782 from Whom Discovery May Be Compelled for Use in a Foreign or International Proceeding

Thai-Lao (Thailand) Co. v. Gov’t of the Lao People’s Democratic Rep., 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 37915 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 19, 2012): 28 U.S.C. § 1782(a) authorizes a federal district court to assist a foreign or international tribunal, or a person interested in a proceeding before such a tribunal, to obtain testimony, documents, or other di ...

While Negligence May Support an Adverse Inference for Spoliation in the Second Circuit, It Is within the District Court’s Discretion to Deny that Sanction

Twitty v. Salius, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 1115, 2-5 (2d Cir. Jan. 19, 2012): We first consider plaintiff's argument that the district court erred when it failed to give an adverse inference instruction in response to the erasure of the original intake videotape, which plaintiff characterizes as the "spoliation of the original intake video. ...

Twitty v. Salius, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 1115, 2-5 (2d Cir. Jan. 19, 2012): We first consider plaintiff’s argument that the district court erred when it failed to give an adverse inference instruction in response to the erasure of the…

Arbitration — Court May Proceed to Merits While Appeal of Denied Motion to Compel Is Pending, But Cannot Rule on Second Motion to Compel — Affidavit on Personal Knowledge Stating that Contract with Arbitration Clause Was Assigned Proves Assignment

From Grant v. Houser, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 6060 (5th Cir. Mar. 23, 2012): Before us are two interlocutory appeals from denials of motions to compel arbitration in this action. Primarily at issue is: whether the district court had jurisdiction to rule on the second motion after the appeal of the first denial; and whether sufficient evide ...

Internet Chat — Authenticated and Best Evidence Satisfied by Credible Testimony of One Participant in Chat

United States v. Lebowitz, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 6859 (11th Cir. April 5, 2012): III. AUTHENTICITY AND BEST EVIDENCE Lebowitz argues that the district court abused its discretion by admitting into evidence printouts of internet chat conversations between K.S. and Lebowitz. This court reviews a district court's evidentia ...

Sanctions — Inherent Power Dismissal for Perjury and Forged Document Requires No Prior Warning or Consideration of Lesser Sanctions — Mala in Se and Criminal in Nature — Severity of Sanction Should Be Proportional to Gravity of Offense (Good Quote)

Jackson v. Murphy, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 4993 (7th Cir. Mar. 7, 2012): We next turn to the district court's use of its inherent power to sanction Jackson by dismissing his remaining medical claims. We review that dismissal for abuse of discretion. Judson Atkinson Candies, Inc. v. Latini-Hohberger Dhimantec, 529 F.3d 371, 386 (7th Cir. 20 ...

Jackson v. Murphy, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 4993 (7th Cir. Mar. 7, 2012): We next turn to the district court’s use of its inherent power to sanction Jackson by dismissing his remaining medical claims. We review that dismissal for abuse…

Unjust Enrichment — California Courts Are Split as to Whether It States a Separate Cause of Action

Cortez v. New Century Mortgage Corp., 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13469 (N.D. Cal. Feb. 3, 2012): California courts are split as to whether there is an independent cause of action for unjust enrichment. Baggett v. Hewlett-Packard Co., 582 F. Supp. 2d 1261, 1270-71 (C.D. Cal. 2007) (applying California law). One view is that it is a general pr ...

Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

Class Action Fairness Act — Parens Patriae Action Brought on Behalf of All State Citizens pursuant to State Statute Falls within CAFA’s General Public Exception and Must be Remanded to State Court

Social Media — Chats and Texts Authenticated by One Party to Conversations Who Lacked Motive to Falsify — Corroborating Circumstances for Text Authentication

However Liberally Construed, Pro Se Complaint Must Still Contain Sufficient Facts to Satisfy Twiqbal

Email Authentication Standards in New Hampshire (Applying Authentication Rule Identical to Fed.R.Evid. 901)

Foreign Government Is Not a “Person” within 28 U.S.C. § 1782 from Whom Discovery May Be Compelled for Use in a Foreign or International Proceeding

While Negligence May Support an Adverse Inference for Spoliation in the Second Circuit, It Is within the District Court’s Discretion to Deny that Sanction

Arbitration — Court May Proceed to Merits While Appeal of Denied Motion to Compel Is Pending, But Cannot Rule on Second Motion to Compel — Affidavit on Personal Knowledge Stating that Contract with Arbitration Clause Was Assigned Proves Assignment

Internet Chat — Authenticated and Best Evidence Satisfied by Credible Testimony of One Participant in Chat

Sanctions — Inherent Power Dismissal for Perjury and Forged Document Requires No Prior Warning or Consideration of Lesser Sanctions — Mala in Se and Criminal in Nature — Severity of Sanction Should Be Proportional to Gravity of Offense (Good Quote)

Unjust Enrichment — California Courts Are Split as to Whether It States a Separate Cause of Action

Recent Posts

FRAP 38 Sanctions Imposed Due to the “Striking Legal Emptiness” of Brief/Appeal, “A Legal Nothingburger” — Bad Faith Not Required: An Appeal “May Also Be Frivolous If It Is Filed Out Of Sheer Obstinacy” (Good Quotes)

RICO: Hobbs Act does not apply when the alleged extortion is meant to benefit the state

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

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