A Cautionary Tale For Business Organizations Testifying Through A Designated Representative

Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 30(b)(6), a party can seek to depose a corporation or an organization by sending a notice or subpoena that describes "with reasonable particularity the matters for examination." The corporation or organization must then identify an individual who "must testify about information known or reasonably available to the organization" regarding the designated subjects. Because a corporation had failed, in the view of the district court and the court of appeals, to fulfill its obligation to provide a sufficiently knowledgeable representative, it was the subject of sanctions that were affirmed on appeal in Imperial Premium Finance, LLC v. Lincoln Nat'l Life Ins. Co., Case No. 13-12559 (decided February 26, 2015).