Ousdale v. Target Corporation

Filing 78

ORDER Granting in part Defendant Target Corporation's 73 Motion for Reconsideration. Responses due by 9/6/2019. Replies due by 9/13/2019. Signed by Judge Andrew P. Gordon on 8/26/2019. (Copies have been distributed pursuant to the NEF - SLD)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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DISTRICT OF NEVADA

3 RYAN OUSDALE,

Case No.: 2:17-cv-02749-APG-NJK

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Order Granting in Part Motion for
Reconsideration

Plaintiff

5 v.
[ECF No. 73]
6 TARGET CORPORATION,
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Defendant
Defendant Target Corporation moves for reconsideration of my order granting spoliation

9 sanctions in the form of an adverse inference instruction against Target. Target failed to respond
10 to plaintiff Ryan Ousdale’s motion for sanctions. Target contends that it did not believe it had to
11 respond until after I decided whether to grant Ousdale’s motion to seal the sanctions motion.
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Target’s position that it need not respond to a motion until the court rules on a related

13 motion to seal has no foundation in either the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or the Local
14 Rules. Nevertheless, there is a strong policy in favor of resolving cases on the merits, rather than
15 on procedural missteps. See Eitel v. McCool, 782 F.2d 1470, 1472 (9th Cir. 1986) (noting the
16 “strong policy underlying the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure favoring decisions on the
17 merits”). Consequently, I grant Target leave to file an opposition to the motion to sanctions.
18 However, I deny Target’s request that I vacate my prior decision at this time. I will revisit my
19 prior order once briefing is complete.
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IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that defendant Target Corporation’s motion for

21 reconsideration (ECF No. 73) is GRANTED in part.
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IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Target Corporation may file an opposition to plaintiff

23 Ryan Ousdale’s motion for sanctions on or before September 6, 2019.

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IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that plaintiff Ryan Ousdale may file a reply on or before

2 September 13, 2019.
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DATED this 26th day of August, 2019.

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ANDREW P. GORDON
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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