Judge Xinis getting tired of DOJ BS

Excerpts:

"Defendants are therefore ordred to supplement their answers in full compliance with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Their answers must include facts responsive to the requests, not oblique and incomplete, non-specific characterizations."

Ouch.

"Equally specious, Defendants’ objections on the grounds of privilege are rejected.  . Defendants invoke in name only a range of protections—attorney-client privilege, the work-product doctrine, the deliberative process privilege, the state secrets privilege, and an undefined “governmental privilege”—without providing any supporting information or analysis.  As Defendants and their counsel know, the proponent of a privilege must demonstrate the legal and factual bases to invoke the protections that such privilege affords.  [...]  To that end, the proponents of the privilege must produce a privilege log that specifically identifies each document or communication and the type of privilege being asserted.  [...] And yet, Defendants and counsel stubbornly refuse to provide any basis for the same. Given that this Court expressly warned Defendants and their counsel to adhere strictly to their discovery obligations [...] (“Because in fairness, Mr. Ensign, [if] you’re not going to answer the questions that the plaintiffs put within the scope of my order, then you’ll justify why. You’ll cite privilege, you’ll follow the rules, I’ll make a determination.”), their boilerplate, non-particularized objections are presumptively invalid and reflect a willful refusal to comply with this Court’s Discovery Order and governing rules.   

         [...]  

For weeks, Defendants have sought refuge behind vague and unsubstantiated assertions of privilege, using them as a shield to obstruct discovery and evade compliance with this Court’s orders. Defendants have known, at least since last week, that this Court requires specific legal and factual showings to support any claim of privilege. Yet they have continued to rely on boilerplate assertions. That ends now. "

Ouch.

"Accordingly, by no later than 6:00 PM on April 23, 2025, Defendants shall supplement their answers and responses to provide the specific legal and factual bases for each asserted privilege and produce a privilege log that fully complies with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and this Court’s Local Rules."

Continue reading.  It doesn't get any nicer.