Racism: An Embarrassment for India


As a devotee of cricket from my Jamaica days, I am saddened to see that Australia and India are literally on the verge of severing diplomatic relations on account of the fact that at the recent test match in Sydney, the Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh, a Sikh, was accused of racially abusing Andrew Symonds , the Australian all-rounder. Mr. Singh was given a three-match suspension after being found guilty, allegedly referring to Mr.Symonds, who is black, as a "monkey". Rather than apologize to Mr. Symonds , to Australian fans, and to his fellow countrymen, Mr. Singh has denied wrongdoing. The Board of Control for Cricket in India suspended the test match, and India is now consumed with anger at what they characterize as unfair treatment of Mr. Singh. A sad state of affairs.



Sullivan & Cromwell Sues Electronic Evidence Discovery Inc.


On December 28, 2007, Sullivan & Cromwell filed suit in the Southern District of New York against EED, a vendor providing electronic discovery services, alleging sub-standard and untimely services. The suit seeks a declaratory judgment that the law firm is not liable for approximately $710,000 in fees. See Civil No. 07-cv-11616.


Sanctions for Destruction of Personal Computer


In APC Filtration Inc. v. Becker, 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 76221 (N.D.Ill., October 12, 2007), the court sanctioned a former employee/defendant in a misappropriation of confidential information and diversion of corporate opportunities case for the "crash" of defendant's personal computer. Defendant alleged that he took his computer to a repair shop where he was told that "the motherboard and hard drive were shot, and that the computer was not worth fixing." Defendant testified that he then threw the computer away with "other junk", admitting that he drove twenty miles from his home to a dumpster at a construction site to dispose of the computer. The court, finding that the computer was discoverable and that defendant had reasonable notice that the computer could become the subject of discovery, held that defendant had acted in bad faith and impaired plaintiff's ability to prove its case, warranting sanctions.


Class Action Filings on the Increase


If you had any doubt whether class action cases were on the increase, you only need to see the data for new class action filings in California state and federal courts in the Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Jose, Sacramento, San Diego, San Mateo, Oakland/Alameda, and Orange County areas. In the two week period from December 21, 2007 through January 3, 2008, there were 57 new class actions filed, 33 of which were employment-related.