Defendant’s Discovery Abuse and Spoliation Warrant Terminating Sanctions and Fee Award

The court entered a judgment of default against defendant for discovery abuses and spoliation of evidence. "Defendant has so damaged the integrity of the discovery process, as well as the litigation process itself, that a case dispositive motion is appropriate. . . . Defendant demonstrated a complete inability to comply with virtually any deadline in this case, whether the deadline was set by agreement of the parties or the Court. Defendant significantly delayed responding to discovery, meeting and conferring over discovery disputes, and supplementing discovery. Further, when Defendant actually responded to discovery, such responses were routinely, significantly, and unrelentingly, deficient. . . . Defendant also committed spoliation of evidence by admittedly destroying products which infringed the Patent, doing so after Defendant knew of the existence of this lawsuit. . . . Such behavior makes it so there is no assurance that this matter can proceed to trial on the true facts. . . . Due to the fact that full, fair, and adequate discovery could not be obtained by Plaintiff, preventing any ability to determine damages with any precision, Plaintiff is entitled to an award of its reasonable attorney’s fees and costs under the relevant statutes."

United Construction Products, Inc. v. Tile Tech, Inc., 2-14-cv-08570 (CACD December 1, 2015, Order) (Real, J.)