In imposing strict evidentiary and monetary sanctions for a party’s repeated failure to produce requested electronically stored information, the Delaware Court of Chancery recently observed that counsel’s “professed technological incompetence is not an excuse for discovery misconduct.”
In James v. National Financial LLC, C.A. No. 8931 VCL (Del. Ch. Dec. 5, 2014), Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster found fault both in the lead defense counsel’s explanation that he was “not computer-literate” and in Delaware counsel’s failure to play an active role in the discovery process. The ruling illustrates the importance of having counsel or consultants with e-discovery expertise involved in Delaware business litigation.
