Litigation

Judge finds Dell Inc. in Contempt

By reston, Gates and Ellis

By BECKY BOHRER

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A state court judge on Thursday found Dell Inc. in contempt of court, saying the computer company was making a "mockery" of the system with its alleged piecemeal production of documents in a civil lawsuit over New Orleans' crime camera system.

Judge Rosemary Ledet also ordered Texas-based Dell to pay $25,000 in sanctions. Plaintiffs' attorneys had requested nearly $182,000 in fees and expenses.

Dell attorney Phillip Wittmann disputed claims that the company was dragging its feet and playing games in discovery, saying that more than 160,000 pages of documents have been produced, e-mail and other information has been handed over as it's been uncovered and that the company has been acting in good faith.

But Ledet called the company's conduct "unconscionable," after hearing arguments from plaintiffs' attorneys that searches using such keywords as "camera" were not done for e-mail and other documents that may have been sent to or by Dell executives, including Chief Executive Michael Dell.

Plaintiffs' attorney Gladstone Jones said he "wasted my time" in Texas last week for Michael Dell's deposition because of the quality of the records' search.

Ledet ordered a search using specific words and said the sides can discuss how to proceed if the search yields a huge amount of records. She did not order that depositions, like Michael Dell's, be taken again.

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Full post as published by eDiscovery Law on June 25, 2009 (boomark / email).