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Appellate Advocacy Keyed to Meador, 2nd Ed.
United States v. Columbia Broadcasting System, Inc.
Citation:
666 F.2d 364 (1982)Facts
The case involved five television programming producers (Columbia Pictures Industries, Gulf & Western Industries, MCA, Twentieth Century-Fox Film, and Warner Communications) who were subpoenaed as non-party witnesses by CBS and ABC in antitrust suits brought by the Justice Department. The networks’ discovery demands were extensive, seeking production of most material in the studios’ control pertaining to television programming and theatrical films since 1960. The studios moved to quash the subpoenas and expressly reserved the right to seek reimbursement of discovery costs. The district court enforced most of the subpoenas with limited modifications but did not address costs. To comply with the discovery demands, the studios hired and trained large staffs, transported thousands of boxes of documents, and made seventeen individuals available for deposition over more than eighty work days. Throughout the eighteen-month production process, the studios filed status reports detailing their progress and costs, and reiterated their intention to seek reimbursement. After completing production, the studios filed a motion seeking reimbursement of approximately $2.3 million in out-of-pocket costs. The district court denied reimbursement without providing any findings of fact or conclusions of law.
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