Piecemeal Approach to Document Production Warrants Sua Sponte Sanctions Award

The court sua sponte sanctioned defendant for failing to adequately respond to plaintiff's document requests. "Rather than conduct a complete search of all corporate files, defendant and counsel for defendant have instead taken a piecemeal approach to discovery, reviewing only the files of select corporate employees. This approach is contrary to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and to repeated orders of this court. . . . Although plaintiff has not expressly requested an award of attorney’s fees, defendant’s repeated failure to comply with this court’s orders warrants sanctions and an award of fees. . . . The court already has ordered defendant to pay the reasonable attorney’s fees of plaintiff associated with two recent discovery motions. It is evident, however, that defendant’s extended delay in responding to discovery requests has caused plaintiff to incur attorney’s fees and expenses well beyond those associated with the two recent motions."

M-Edge International Corporation v. LifeWorks Technology Group LLC, 1-14-cv-03627 (MDD June 3, 2016, Order) (Gesner, M.J.)