The plaintiff, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, moved to compel the defendant, CHG Medical Staffing, to produce a reinsurance agreement between CHG and CNA. In support of its motion, Dartmouth represented that the court had ordered CHG to produce insurance policies during a hearing in a related case. CHG refused to produce the agreement on the ground that discovery has not yet begun, citing the automatic discovery moratorium imposed by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(d). Dartmouth argued in its Motion to Compel Production of Documents that CHG is in violation of the “intent and spirit of this Court’s Order, if not the letter.” The court found in favor of CHG, noting that because the parties agreed that the court did not order production of the reinsurance agreement, CHG’s refusal to produce it did not violate an existing court order and that discovery would progress in accordance with the Federal Rules. Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center v. Cross Country Travcorps, Inc., Case No. 09-160 (USDC D.N.H. July 31, 2009).
This post written by Brian Perryman.