Sines v. Kessler

District Court, W.D. Virginia·Decided June 23, 2020·No. 3:17-cv-00072·Unknown

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 0 6 /F2IL3E/D2 020 FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA JULIA C. DUDLEY, CLERK Charlottesville Division BY: /s/ J. JONES DEPUTY CLERK ELIZABETH SINES et al., ) Civil Action No. 3:17-cv-00072 Plaintiffs, ) ) v. ) MEMORANDUM OPINION & ORDER ) JASON KESSLER et al., ) Defendants. ) By: Joel C. Hoppe ) United States Magistrate Judge This matter is before the Court on Plaintiffs’ second Motion to Compel Discovery from Defendant National Socialist Movement (“NSM”). ECF No. 674 (“Pls.’ Second Mot. to Compel”).Although represented by counsel, ECF Nos. 451, 742,NSM did not file a brief in opposition within the fourteen days allowed by the presiding District Judge’s pretrial order,ECF No. 101. NSM’s counsel also failed to appear for a telephonic status and discovery conference held on April 27, 2020. ECF No. 721.Accordingly, the Court considers Plaintiffs’ motion to be unopposedbyDefendant NSM. The “basic philosophy” driving discovery today is “that prior to trial every party to a civil action is entitled to the disclosure of all relevant information in the possession of any person, unless the information is privileged.” 8 Wright & Miller, Federal Practice & Procedure § 2001 (3d ed. 2002); accord Hickman v. Taylor, 329 U.S. 495, 501 (1947) (“The way is now clear, consistent with recognized privileges, for the parties to obtain the fullest possible knowledge of the issues and facts before trial.”). “Discovery, in other words, is not a one-way proposition. It is available in all types of cases at the behest of any party, individual or corporate, plaintiff or defendant.” Hickman, 329 U.S. at 507. “To that end, either party may compel the other to disgorge whatever [relevant] facts he has in his possession.” Id.; see Eramo v. Rolling Stone, LLC, 314 F.R.D.205, 209 (W.D. Va. 2016); Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(a)(1). Rules 26 through 36 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provide specific devices or procedures—such as interrogatories, document requests, and depositions—for parties to obtain discoverable information. See Pruitt v. Bank of Am., N.A., No. 8:15cv1310, 2016 WL 7033972, at *2 (D. Md. Dec. 2, 2016); Middlebrooks v. Sebelius, Civ. No. 04-2792, 2009 WL 251411, at *3 (D. Md. Aug. 13, 2009). Courts rely “in large part on the good faith and diligence of counsel

and the parties in abiding by these rules and conducting themselves and their judicial business honestly.” Metro. Opera Ass’n, Inc. v. Local 100, Hotel Emps. & Rest. Emps. Int’l Union, 212 F.R.D. 178, 181 (S.D.N.Y. 2003). When they do not, Rule 37 provides one mechanism for a court to compel compliance, Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(a), or to sanction an unacceptable failure to follow the rules, see Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(b)–(f). Here, Plaintiffs moved to compel on grounds that Defendant NSM failed to produce electronically stored information (“ESI”) and failed to permit inspection of electronic devices within its control as Plaintiffs requested under Rule 34. Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(a)(3)(B)(iv); see generally Pls.’ Second Mot. to Compel 6–9, 14–30.1 Rule 34 allows one party to ask another party “to produce and permit the requesting party

or its representative to inspect [or] copy . . . any designated documents or electronically stored information” or “any designated tangible things” within “the responding party’s possession, custody, or control,”2 Fed. R. Civ. P. 34(a)(1)(A)–(B), in order to “obtain discovery regarding any nonprivileged matter that is relevant to any party’s claim or defense and proportional to the needs of the case,” Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(b)(1). When the responding party is an artificial entity, like

1 Pinpoint citations to documents filed electronically with this Court, except transcripts of depositions and court proceedings, use the “page X of Y” numbers generated by CM/ECF. Pinpoint citations to transcripts use the page number printed in the upper righthand corner of the cited page. 2 “Control” in this context means “actual possession” or “the legal right to obtain” the requested document, ESI, or tangible thing “on demand.” Terry v. Modern Inv. Co., No. 3:04cv85, 2006 WL 2434264, at *6 n.15 (W.D. Va. Aug. 21, 2006) (Moon, J.) (internal quotation marks omitted). Defendant NSM in this case, that party must rely on its officers, directors, or managing agents to fulfill the party’s discovery obligations.3 See, e.g., Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(b)(2); Selee Corp. v. McDanel Advanced Ceramic Techs., LLC, No. 1:15cv129, 2016 WL 4546446, at *3 (W.D.N.C. Aug. 31, 2016); Flame S.A. v. Indus. Carriers, Inc., 39 F. Supp. 3d 752, 759 (E.D. Va. 2014); In re Honda Am. Motor Co. Dealership Relations Litig., 168 F.R.D. 535, 540 (D. Md. 1996).

* Plaintiffs’ second motion to compel focuses on non-party Burt Colucci’s relationship with Defendant NSM. See generally Pls.’ Second Mot. to Compel 6–7, 12–14, 17–28. Mr. Colucci joined NSM around 2001. Pls.’ Second Mot. to Compel Ex. 5, Tr. of Dep. of B. Colucci 38–39, 49 (Dec. 10, 2019), ECF No. 708-15. His involvement with the group fluctuated over the years until early 2018, when Defendant Jeff Schoep appointed Mr. Colucci to serve as NSM’s chief of staff. See id. at 47–49, 50–57. Mr. Colucci handled “day-to-day operations” for NSM, which he described as doing “everything” the other leaders “were supposed to be doing,” id. at 53, including managing emails and overseeing “propaganda,” id. at 54. He also had authority to

set up email accounts through the organization’s website, www.NSM88.org. Id. at 80–81. Schoep told Mr. Colucci that he “may have to take over the organization at some point if he can’t run it anymore.” Id. at 67. Schoep and Mr. Colucci spoke often about this lawsuit after he became chief of staff. Schoep once asked “how much longer could [they] afford to pay the lawyer,” to which Mr. Colucci responded, “maybe a few more months at best” because they

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