| D. Mississippi [N.D.] |
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Reminder: These case digests are provided for informational purposes only, and do not constitute legal advice. Anyone conducting legal research on a particular topic or in a specific jurisdiction is advised to supplement these materials with their own efforts or those of a qualified attorney whom they have hired for that purpose.2010Maggette v. BL Development Corp., NO. 2:07CV181-M-A LEAD CASE, NO. 2:07CV182-M-A (N.D. Miss. 9-2-2010) — A long-running civil suit brought by families and the estates of victims who died in a bus accident while traveling to a casino owned and operated by defendant, which had arranged the transporation as part of a "comps" package. Frustrated with the response of defendant during the course of discovery, the Magistrate Judge appointed a special master with certification in computer forensics. After reading three reports prepared by the special master following his forensic investigation, the Court concluded that it was unequivocally clear that defendant had acted in bad faith throughout the discovery process. Pursuant to an earlier warning to defendant, the Court imposed a dispositive sanction as to the issue of agency between defendant and the bus company it hired. As a result, the sole issues at trial were reduced to whether the bus company was negligent and the amount of damages suffered by plaintiffs. The opinion is rife with commentary by the District Court about how it is increasingly easy for parties in cases involving electronic evidence to provide incomplete responses, trusting in the fact that forensic investigations are frequently beyond the means of either opposing parties or the courts. |
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