In re: Petition of Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Dist. Ct. erred in directing defendant to produce 13 of its employees located in Germany for depositions to take place in New York City as sanction for various discovery abuses. Dist. Ct. could not use instant sanction to require defendant’s U.S. citizen employees in Germany to appear before Dist. Ct. to take deposition, where said citizens could have been deposed in Amsterdam, where parties had originally agreed to take their depositions. Moreover, defendant’s foreign-born employees in Germany could not otherwise be forced to come to U.S. to be deposed. Ct. further observed that defendant’s employees should not be punished for “sins” of defendant by requiring that they come to inconvenient place to take deposition, rather than convenient place where parties had agreed to take their depositions. (Dissent filed.)