On June 27, 2018, Judge Kinkeade issued a post-trial Order in Zenimax v. Oculus (available here). The Court had previously entered orders requiring the Plaintiffs to produce certain documents relating to their financial status and business valuations, including an order during trial. After trial, the Plaintiffs produced certain responsive documents.
The Court found that “the record clearly establishes the Plaintiffs willfully violated the Court’s discovery Orders and that sanctions are appropriate under the circumstances of this case.” Defendants asked the Court to find the Plaintiffs in civil contempt, impose a monetary fine to compel the remaining documents to be produced, and grant a partial new trial on several of the Plaintiffs’ claims. The Court rejected these as sanctions, and concluded that “the most appropriate sanction for the Plaintiffs’ conduct is striking their pleadings that seek recovery of their attorneys’ fees, thereby precluding the Plaintiffs from recovering these additional sums.”
The Court noted that the Plaintiffs had sought approximately $40 million in attorney’s fees in their post-trial briefing.