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What is a General Objection?
ANSWER: A fictional document. A non-existent objection neither based in statutory authority nor found in case law. A statement by a party during the discovery phase that they will neither be held...
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Why You Need to Bring a Motion to Strike General Objections
Recently I was contacted to help on a party’s Motion to Compel Further Responses to Form Interrogatories, Requests for Production of Documents, and Requests for Admissions. In viewing opposing...
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A Third-Party Can Expect Sanctions for Ignoring a Subpoena for Electronically...
W. George Wailes, a Business Trial Attorney and Director at Carr McClellan, in Burlingame, CA brings us this warning from the California Court of Appeal about what could happen to a third party that...
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Should you withdraw your motion if the other side has complied?
I have always been a strong advocate that you should be awarded sanctions if you had to bring a motion to get the relief you were entitled to even if the other side complied prior to the hearing on the...
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2015 New Years Resolutions–No real changes to the Discovery Act
I am happy to report that there were no substantive changes to the Discovery Act. The only change to any of the discovery codes is C.C.P. Section 2025.510 which involves deposition transcripts. As...
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Treating Physicians–Treat Them Right
Personal Injury attorney Miles B. Cooper, a partner at Emison Hullverson LLP, wrote a very insightful article in the March, 2014 issue of Plaintiff Magazine on the joys and pitfalls of deposing...
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Without Consent of the Parties . . .
If you perform a Lexis search using the words “Special Master” in the Code of Civil Procedure you will find “no results.” This is because there is no statutory authority for such an appointment....
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Are You Ready For Mediation? Part 2–The Ten Commandments
As a mediator, there is always a case that you question yourself as to what you could you could have done differently in order to resolve the matter. My case involved a personal injury case. It...
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WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE CURRENT CMO PROCESS IN CONSTRUCTION LITIGATION? And...
At the 22nd Annual West Coast Casualty Seminar, Plaintiff counsel Michael Kennedy, General Contractor Counsel Matthew Hawk, Subcontractor Counsel Brian Sanders, Claims Manager James Rzpecki and I...
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Read it and weep–Inadvertent Disclosure of Privileged Documents
Here is another great article from Miles B. Cooper. Subtitle: Inadvertent disclosure of privileged documents during discovery The lawyer read in disbelief. The memo, on defendant’s letterhead,...
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Can I Videotape Opposing Counsel During a Deposition?
For years, parties have videotaped both the deponent as well as the lawyer asking the questions during a deposition. The purpose is to provide a split screen video to the jury at trial which would...
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DISCOVERY GAMES AND MISCONCEPTIONS – Are These Objections Legitimate?
Several times per month I receive questions from attorneys regarding a discovery dilemma. Mostly the questions offer a novel twist on basic discovery. However, this latest query was quirkier than...
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No Waiver of Privileges for Inadequate Privilege Log
Can a trial court order a party to disclose potentially privileged information because the party’s privilege log did not provide sufficient information for the court to evaluate whether the...
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Are You Following Up on Your Opponent’s Discovery Responses?
Unlike Federal Rule Civil Procedure 26(e)(1) – (2), California law does not impose a continuing duty on a party to supplement their interrogatory or document responses. Biles v. Exxon Mobil Corp....
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2016 New Years Resolution–New Requirements for Deposition Notices
There was only one change to the Discovery Codes but it was significant. The legislature added language to Code of Civil Procedure Section 2025.220 with added requirements when you serve a deposition...
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DISCOVERY GAMES AND MISCONCEPTIONS – Is the Court Correct That There is No...
Recently I received an e-mail from an attorney who followed my advice regarding General Objections. It went like this: “I read your article ‘Why you Need to Bring a Motion to Strike General...
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The Pitfalls of Bad Discovery Habits
For years I have been blogging about bad discovery habits from Garbage Objections to unauthorized General Objections, and preached that attorneys must play by the rules. As you know if you have read...
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The Interrogatory Says What it Says
There are very few discovery cases that come out each year. Usually they are are significant and involve privileges such as Coito v. Superior Court and Catalina Island Yacht Club v. Superior Court....
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Discovery and the Motion for Summary Judgment
In most practices areas, facts are king. The attorney who can discover and present the best “facts” will be the most persuasive when presenting their case to the judge or jury. However, some cases can...
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Avoiding the Technical Mistakes When Drafting Written Discovery
Recently I received a telephone call from an attorney wanting to discuss whether opposing party’s objections to her special interrogatories had any merit. Listening to the list of objections, it was...
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