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Case shelved under Proportionality

Public Interest Key Factor in Recent Proportionality Ruling

VoteAmerica v. Schwab
D. Kan. June 2, 2022
Why This Case Is Important

When making production requests, your request should be narrowly tailored to the circumstances surrounding the case. Usually, the amount in controversy is the deciding factor on whether the request is proportional or unduly burdensome, but this case shows that the public interest also can play a big role in the court’s proportionality analysis.

Ruling
  • Granted and Denied in Part. The court helped the parties resolve their disagreement around the terms of the production requests by making the requests more specific to a smaller set of data. Thus, the court granted the defendants’ request to produce, but added the words “partially prefilled or personalized” to narrow the scope of the production.
  • Proportionality Extends Beyond Amount in Controversy. Since the Plaintiffs weren’t asking for solely monetary damages, and the issues at stake relate “to State's ability to regulate and ensure fair and orderly elections,” the court carefully conducted its proportionality analysis. This led the court to conclude, “the importance of determining the First and Fourteenth Amendment Rights of Plaintiff as weighed against the right of the State to ensure its elections are honest and orderly, from a proportionality standpoint, far outweighs the limited fiscal amount in controversy.”
  • Plaintiffs Arguments Not Adequate. The court ruled that the plaintiffs’ arguments about the requests having “no bearing on the actual issues in this case” are not proportionality arguments, but relevance arguments.
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Case Law Tip: Have questions on how the FRCP applies to e-discovery? Download this FRCP E-Discovery Quick Guide to get all your questions answered.
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FRCP & E-DISCOVERY: The Layman's Guide PDF
FRCP & E-DISCOVERY: The Layman's Guide PDF
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