Discovery, Sanctions: Third District Reverses Deposition Discovery Sanctions Against Attorney Because Deposition Suspension Requirements Did Not Entail A Reasonableness Requirement

But Unique Facts, So Do Not Think You Can Suspend Without Repercussions.

            Because we have to report on cases as we come upon them, we will say that Mason v. YD Window, Inc., Case No. C091415 (3d Dist. Oct. 5, 2021) (unpublished) is a little hard to decipher, but we will try.  In essence, a plaintiff’s attorney was hit with discovery sanctions by a discovery referee of $9,087.55 for suspending a deposition unreasonably.  There was some evidence that the defense was being crazy.  The attorney appealed, with the Third District reversing.  It found that there was no reasonableness requirement, at the time, for suspension for a deposition under Code of Civil Procedure section 2025.460(c).  The appellate court concluded there was no reasonableness requirement, the law was unsettled, and there was some indication in the record that the other side was itself unreasonable.  There you go!