March 18, 2024
Court Penalizes Elite Lighting in REPCO II Litigation
Lighting maker faces $1,000 daily fines if demands are not met by March 27
In a recent development in the legal tussle between Pittsburgh lighting agent REPCO II, and California-based lighting maker, Elite Lighting, the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania issued a stern ruling, addressing Elite's non-compliance in the discovery process. The conflict, rooted in Repco’s allegations of over $280,000 in unpaid agent commissions and other contractual breaches, has now escalated due to Elite's failure to adhere to discovery obligations, prompting the court to impose significant sanctions.
Discovery Dispute Deepens
At the heart of this litigation is Repco's accusation that Elite Lighting breached a sales representative contract, under which Repco was to promote Elite's products in return for commissions. The legal battle took a turn when Elite was accused of dragging its feet in the discovery phase, not producing crucial documents despite repeated court orders. Repco II seeks disclosure from Elite on sales orders in Western Pennsylvania and West Virginia for which it wasn't paid commissions. This led Repco to file a Motion for Sanctions, citing Elite's non-compliance.
Elite attempted to justify its delays by citing challenges in locating and producing the required documents, attributing it to a manual, time-consuming process akin to forensic accounting. Despite these explanations, the court found Elite's efforts lacking and its justifications unconvincing, especially in light of Elite's previous assurances of forthcoming compliance.
Judicial Sanctions Laid Down
Judge William S. Stickman IV, presiding over the case, issued a ruling that granted Repco's Motion for Sanctions in part, denying their request for a default judgment but imposing monetary penalties for Elite's discovery failures.
The court ordered Elite to pay $7,093 in sanctions, covering Repco's reasonable expenses and attorney's fees incurred due to the discovery motion. Furthermore, Elite was given a final deadline of March 27, 2024, to fully comply with Repco's discovery requests, failing which a daily penalty of $1,000 would be imposed from March 28, 2024, onwards.
We reached out to Repco and Elite Lighting for comments on the latest development; neither immediately responded by press time.
