Complex Lit Blog

Rule 45 (Or Inherent Power) Sanctions: Fees for Trial Subpoena End Run Around Discovery Deadline — Sub Has Standing to Move to Quash for Parent — Due Process: Rule 45 Puts Counsel on Notice of Its Terms — FRAP 38 Fees for Post-Hoc Rationalizations

Progresive Emu Inc. v. Nutrition & Fitness Inc., 2019 WL 3798494 (11th Cir. Aug. 13, 2019) (unpublished): PER CURIAM: *1 This appeal arises from a breach-of-contract dispute between Plaintiff Progressive Emu Inc.,1 a producer and supplier of emu ...

Sanctions: Omission Must Be Material before Dismissal May Be Apt — Materiality Defined — State of Mind Critical (Contract, Tort Examples)

Greyer v. Ill. Dep’t of Corrections, 2019 WL 3798212 (7th Cir. Aug. 13, 2019): *1 One of Congress’s expressed goals when it passed the Prison Litigation Reform Act (“PLRA”) was to rein in the flood of prisoner litigation—all too often frivolous or vexatious, it thought—clogging the courts. See Margo Schlan ...

Experts — Legal Malpractice Expert Who Describes Only How S/he Does Same Task for Same Client Fails to Establish What Defendant Should Have Done — Opinion Properly Excluded under 37(c)(1) as Overly Broad, Subjective, Non-Compliant with 26(a)

EQT Prod. Co. v. Phillips, 767 Fed. Appx. 626 (6th Cir. Mar. 29, 2019): This legal malpractice case arises from title opinions that attorney Dale Phillips ("Phillips") provided to EQT Prod ...

EQT Prod. Co. v. Phillips, 767 Fed. Appx. 626 (6th Cir. Mar. 29, 2019): This legal malpractice case arises from title opinions that attorney Dale Phillips ("Phillips") provided to EQT Production Company ("EQT") regarding EQT's rights and ownership in certain …

Sanctions Issue Certified to 2d Cir. — May a Bankruptcy Court Order “Punitive Sanctions” under Its Inherent Power, § 105(a) or for Violation of Rule 3002.1(i)? — [May Any Court Issue Punitive Sanctions after Goodyear v. Haeger?]

In re Gravel, 2019 Bankr. LEXIS 2576 (Bankr. D. Vt. Aug. 12, 2019): MEMORANDUM OF DECISION Certifying Decision for Direct Appeal Under

In re Gravel, 2019 Bankr. LEXIS 2576 (Bankr. D. Vt. Aug. 12, 2019): MEMORANDUM OF DECISION Certifying Decision for Direct Appeal Under 28 U.S.C. § 158(d)(2) The chapter 13 trustee has filed a motion, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 158(d)(2)(A)…

Rule 11—No Sanctions for “Aggressive Lit. Strategy with Colorable (If Strained) Basis,” “Understandable” “Mix-Up” — “It Is One Thing to Lose … Another to Urge Something [Sufficiently] Ill-Founded” (Good Quotes)

MAO-MSO Recovery II, LLC v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 24355 (7th Cir. Aug. 15, 2019): When all the dust is cleared away, this case is relatively straightforward: we must review a ...

Inherent Power Sanctions for Violation of Court Order — Orders Must Be Complied with Until Undone — Contempt Option If Party Has No Recourse to Permit Prompt Appeal Because Violation Cannot Be Undone

MacNaughton v. Harmelech, 2019 WL 3451275 (7th Cir. July 31, 2019): *1 The complex background of these consolidated appeals burrows through over a decade of litigation. Russian Media Group sued Ishaihu Harmelech and his company (“Harmelech Defendants”) in 2006. Attorney W. James Mac Naughton actively repre ...

MacNaughton v. Harmelech, 2019 WL 3451275 (7th Cir. July 31, 2019): *1 The complex background of these consolidated appeals burrows through over a decade of litigation. Russian Media Group sued Ishaihu Harmelech and his company (“Harmelech Defendants”) in 2006. Attorney …

Arbitration — Choice of Law, Like Arb., Clause, Invokable Only by Party with Standing to Enforce Contract — Collection Agent Can’t Enforce Arb Clause between Bank & Customer as 3d Party Beneficiary, Agent or Via Equitable Estoppel

Orn v. Alltran Fin., L.P., 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 20744 (3d Cir. July 12, 2019) (unpublished): Alltran Financial, a debt collector, appeals the District Court's denial of its motion to compel arbitration ...

Facebook Messages Sent from Another’s Account Authenticated by Self-Identification, References to Page Owner in Third Person, and Knowledge of Events Known Only to Recipient and Sender

Graham v. State, 2019 Ind. App. Unpub. LEXIS 898 (Ind. Ct. App. July 15, 2019): P1 Tommy Graham ("Graham") was convicted in Jackson Circuit Court of two counts of Level 4 felony sexual mis ...

Graham v. State, 2019 Ind. App. Unpub. LEXIS 898 (Ind. Ct. App. July 15, 2019): P1 Tommy Graham ("Graham") was convicted in Jackson Circuit Court of two counts of Level 4 felony sexual misconduct with a minor and one count …

Facebook Live Video Authenticated Like Any Video — By Witness to Recorded Events or Operator or Maintainer of Equipment Testifying That Video Accurately Represents The Subject Matter Depicted And Has Not Been Tampered With

People v Y.L., 2019 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 3209 (Sup. Ct. Monroe Cnty. May 17, 2019): This decision supplements the oral decision of the Court rendered on March 21, 2019, in accordance with the Criminal Law of th ...

Rule 16(f), 37 Sanctions — Default Judgment — Factors (6th Cir.) — May a Party Appeal a Default Judgment without First Moving to Vacate It under Rule 60(b)? (Circuit Split) — Due Process & Default Judgments—What “Due Process” Meant in 1354

Prime Rate Premium Finance Corporation, Inc. v. Larson, 201 ...

Prime Rate Premium Finance Corporation, Inc. v. Larson, 2019 WL 3024726 (6th Cir. July 11, 2019): *1 After four years of perpetual delays, Prime Rate Premium Finance Corporation obtained a sixth trial date to vindicate its claims that Karen Larson …

Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

Rule 45 (Or Inherent Power) Sanctions: Fees for Trial Subpoena End Run Around Discovery Deadline — Sub Has Standing to Move to Quash for Parent — Due Process: Rule 45 Puts Counsel on Notice of Its Terms — FRAP 38 Fees for Post-Hoc Rationalizations

Sanctions: Omission Must Be Material before Dismissal May Be Apt — Materiality Defined — State of Mind Critical (Contract, Tort Examples)

Experts — Legal Malpractice Expert Who Describes Only How S/he Does Same Task for Same Client Fails to Establish What Defendant Should Have Done — Opinion Properly Excluded under 37(c)(1) as Overly Broad, Subjective, Non-Compliant with 26(a)

Sanctions Issue Certified to 2d Cir. — May a Bankruptcy Court Order “Punitive Sanctions” under Its Inherent Power, § 105(a) or for Violation of Rule 3002.1(i)? — [May Any Court Issue Punitive Sanctions after Goodyear v. Haeger?]

Rule 11—No Sanctions for “Aggressive Lit. Strategy with Colorable (If Strained) Basis,” “Understandable” “Mix-Up” — “It Is One Thing to Lose … Another to Urge Something [Sufficiently] Ill-Founded” (Good Quotes)

Inherent Power Sanctions for Violation of Court Order — Orders Must Be Complied with Until Undone — Contempt Option If Party Has No Recourse to Permit Prompt Appeal Because Violation Cannot Be Undone

Arbitration — Choice of Law, Like Arb., Clause, Invokable Only by Party with Standing to Enforce Contract — Collection Agent Can’t Enforce Arb Clause between Bank & Customer as 3d Party Beneficiary, Agent or Via Equitable Estoppel

Facebook Messages Sent from Another’s Account Authenticated by Self-Identification, References to Page Owner in Third Person, and Knowledge of Events Known Only to Recipient and Sender

Facebook Live Video Authenticated Like Any Video — By Witness to Recorded Events or Operator or Maintainer of Equipment Testifying That Video Accurately Represents The Subject Matter Depicted And Has Not Been Tampered With

Rule 16(f), 37 Sanctions — Default Judgment — Factors (6th Cir.) — May a Party Appeal a Default Judgment without First Moving to Vacate It under Rule 60(b)? (Circuit Split) — Due Process & Default Judgments—What “Due Process” Meant in 1354

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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