Imaging Hard Drives – Bow Tie Law

Broken Trust Does Not Mean Discovery Sanctions

April 3, 2015 Josh Gilliland Imaging Hard Drives, Metadata, Request for Production

Parties end up in litigation often because trust has been broken. Distrust can make discovery in civil litigation even more of a legal brawl than anyone enjoys. In Malone v. Kantner Ingredients, the Plaintiffs seriously did not trust the Defendants’ discovery productions. The Plaintiffs alleged the Defendants failed to produce[…]

Stating Reality: Imaging a Hard Drive Makes a Copy

March 19, 2015 Josh Gilliland Imaging Hard Drives, Taxation of Costs

Taxation of cost cases do not generally have happy endings for recovering eDiscovery costs. The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued a very important opinion on March 17, 2015 well grounded in the reality of civil litigation and the law where eDiscovery costs were recovered. It[…]

Forensically Examining A Lawyer’s Computer

September 12, 2012 Josh Gilliland Electronically Stored Information, ESI, Hosted Review Platform, Imaging Hard Drives, Targeted Collection

In a dispute over a will and deed transfer, a New York State Court ordered the examination of a lawyer’s computer. The idea of an attorney’s computer being searched by third parties should scare lawyers to death. The attorney objected on the grounds the examination would violate the attorney-client privilege[…]

The Fabric of Inadequate Search & Spoliation Allegations

May 18, 2012 Josh Gilliland Document Review, Duty to Preserve, e-Discovery, Electronically Stored Information, ESI, Forensic Image, Imaging Hard Drives, Spoliation

In a case involving claims of copyright infringement of fabric design, the tapestry of the Plaintiff’s discovery production was challenged, including allegations the Plaintiff: Neglected to search for and produce several categories of documents; and Deleted relevant emails. The Defendants sought an order permitting a forensic examination of Plaintiff’s computer[…]

Imaging Personal Hard Drives Before Any Claims are Filed

September 30, 2011 Josh Gilliland e-Discovery, Forensic Image, Imaging Hard Drives

A Defendant brought a motion to forensically image the Plaintiff’s “personal computing devices” before a cross complaint had been filed. The motion was denied. Han v. Futurewei Techs., Inc., 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 104538 (S.D. Cal. Sept. 15, 2011). The case was originally filed in California state court and removed[…]

The Confirmation of Existence…Of Responsive ESI

April 4, 2011 Josh Gilliland e-Discovery, Electronically Stored Information, ESI, Imaging Hard Drives, Request for Production, Search Terms

EEOC v. Jp Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., is gender discrimination case with multiple discovery disputes. EEOC v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 34409, 6-7 (S.D. Ohio Mar. 30, 2011). One request for production called for “[w]hatever hardware, software, files, metadata, and properties in Defendant’s possession that[…]

A Standard for Undue Burden: Excruciating, But Highly Educational and Useful, Detail

March 9, 2011 Josh Gilliland De-Dupe, Discovery, Duty to Preserve, e-Discovery, Electronically Stored Information, Email, ESI, Imaging Hard Drives, Processing, Reasonably Accessible

Discovery Balancing Acts in a War Zone United States ex rel. McBride v. Halliburton Co., is a qui tam action over alleged fraudulent billing for services provided to the US military in Iraq. The case involved inflated headcounts in Morale, Welfare and Recreation (“MWR”) facilities and fraudulent billing for those costs to[…]

Discovery in a Flash (Drive)

January 26, 2011 Josh Gilliland Document Review, e-Discovery, Electronically Stored Information, ESI, Imaging Hard Drives

Flash drives were the center of a discovery dispute in a trade secret dispute between high-speed printer service providers. OcÉ N. Am. v. McS Servs., 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5403 (D. Md. Jan. 20, 2011). The Plaintiff sought a forensic image of the flash drives, because the devices contained their software alleged[…]

Production of Litigation Hold Letters & Imaging Hard Drives

January 10, 2011 Josh Gilliland Duty to Preserve, e-Discovery, Electronically Stored Information, Email, Imaging Hard Drives

In an action initiated by an insurance company, the Defendant sought various discovery from the Plaintiff. Am. Gen. Life Ins. Co. v. Billard, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 138570 (N.D. Iowa Dec. 29, 2010). Two issues pertained to the production of litigation hold letters and forensically imaging hard drives. Litigation Hold Letters The[…]