Failure to Prepare Deponent Adequately Leads to Sanctions

“A recent decision found that counsel failed to prepare fully a witness for a Rule 30(b)(6) deposition, resulting in discovery violations and substantial attorney fees. In Opengate Capital Group LLC v. Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the offending party deliberately limited the scope of preparation. Section leaders analyze the decision and identify practice points to help lawyers avoid sanctions when preparing a Rule30(b)(6) witness,” as seen in this article.

Jeffrey J. Greenbaum of Sills Cummis & Gross was quoted, “While the failure seems clear to experts, there is among practitioners great “confusion about what is required under Rule 30(b)(6),” notes Greenbaum, Newark, NJ, co-chair of the Section’s Federal Practice Taskforce. From a review of decisions by federal courts, the Federal Practice Task Force found “eight or ten areas in which courts have come to different conclusions on what the rule requires,” states Greenbaum.”