Know Your Judge: Considerations For When To File A Spoliation Motion

Prior posts have discussed sanctions generally, as well as decisions analyzing the particulars of the operative rules (see November 2024 and December 2023 posts), but today's blog discusses considerations for when, during a litigation, is the proper time to file a spoliation motion.

District Judge Iain Johnston's¹ decision in Groves, Inc. v R.C. Bremer Marketing Associates, et al.provides not only a helpful discussion of the issue but also a reminder that practitioners should understand each judge's rules and preferences when appearing in court.

Background

Groves Inc. brought a spoliation motion against defendant Christopher Sheppard. Specifically, movant alleged emails were spoliated and sought a permissive adverse inference jury instruction. Plaintiff submitted the motion to the court and fully briefed it while proceeding with expert discovery, fact witness depositions, and awaiting dates for summary judgment or trial. Although the court, paraphrasing