Toward a better discovery process.

• Jurisdiction: United States
• Author: Preuss, Charles F.
• Date: 01 April 1998

HOW OFTEN in recent years have you experienced the distinct feeling that a plaintiff's discovery demands are directed more toward creating a claim of discovery abuse than toward establishing the plaintiff's lawsuit? Too often, no doubt.

In today's litigation setting, few limits are placed on discovery. Relevance is so broadly interpreted that discovery is virtually unrestricted. Courts show little stomach for supervising discovery, and the Rules of Civil Procedure do not facilitate the ability of a willing judge to constrain discovery within the confines of the actual claims being asserted.

Permissive environment

Plaintiffs have capitalized on this permissive environment. Discovery far broader than the claims and defenses being asserted is propounded. An action on the merits is quickly transformed into a case for harsh discovery sanctions, including a default. Chudasoma v. Mazda Motor Corp., 123 F.3d 1353 (11th Cir. 1997). A defendant company, rather than its product, becomes the focus of the lawsuit. Resources far in excess of what would be required to...