COURT ENFORCES LIMITATIONS ON DISCOVERY IN CONNECTION WITH RULE 60 MOTION

This case presents an interesting arbitration process issue. In 2004, the parties to this action participated in an arbitration, resulting in a $10,000 award to defendant, Smith Barney. Subsequently, plaintiff filed an action to vacate, and defendant moved to confirm the award. In February, 2005 a California district court confirmed the arbitration award. Plaintiff then filed a motion under Rule 60 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure to vacate that order, and later filed a Renewed Rule 60 Motion. The renewed motion was filed on the grounds that defendant and its counsel had committed “fraud. . . misrepresentation or other misconduct” by making material misrepresentations to the court. Plaintiff also sought discovery under its motion on the basis of newly discovered case law and evidence. The court granted “limited’ discovery. Plaintiff proceeded to use the limited permission granted by the court to “bombard” Defendant with voluminous discovery. Concluding that the Plaintiff’s discovery requests were “inappropriate in breadth” and “went well beyond the limited subjects referred to in the court’s. . . [o]rder,” the Court denied plaintiff’s motion to compel and granted Smith Barney’s motion for protective order. Sathianathan v. Smith Barney, Case No. C-04-02130 SBA (JCS) (N.D. Cal. Aug. 24, 2007).