Requests For Admissions: Orange County Water District Decision Now Partially Published

Reliance On Expert Retained Opinions Can Demonstrate Reasonable Bases For RFA Denials.

           On December 22, 2018, we posted on Orange County Water District v. The Arnold Engineering Co., Case No. D070763 (4^th Dist., Div. 1 Dec. 19, 2018; partially published Jan.10, 2018), which was unpublished at the time. The appellate court reversed a hefty costs-of-proof sanctions award for denial of RFAs because expert opinions supported the RFA denials in some instances. We can now report that this aspect of the decision was partially published on January 10, 2018. However, the unpublished decision—relating to inadmissibility of the evidentiary submissions on expert costs—was not published, although it is instructive for practitioners when facing costs-of-proof sanctions as far as what needs to be competently introduced for purposes of obtaining a “sanctions” award in this area.