Plaintiff Lori LoGiudice developed mesothelioma and brought suit, alleging her disease was caused by her use of asbestos-containing Cashmere Bouquet talcum powder made by Colgate-Palmolive. The only other defendants were suppliers of asbestos-containing talc to Colgate. After the Special Master denied certain discovery requests made by the plaintiff, the plaintiff moved for relief. The court affirmed the recommendations made by the Special Master.
At issue was one request for production involving conversations between Dr. Marie Capdevielle and individuals interviewed by her in preparation for her role as corporate representative (RFP 11), and 54 requests to admit. Colgate argued the requests to admit improperly sought discovery which should have been sought through other means, and were improper in that they fished for information.
New York law mandated that request for admission should concern “the authenticity of documents, the correctness of pictures, and ‘the truth of factual matters the requesting party ‘reasonably believes there can be no factual dispute.’” As such, the court affirmed the Special Master’s recommendation of RFP 11. Similarly, the court also affirmed the recommendation denying the requests to admit. The plaintiff failed to demonstrate that these requests were narrowly tailored to eliminate from litigation factual matters that would not be in dispute at trial. The plaintiff’s requests, in many instances, sought to “learn Colgate’s contentions by offering a series of competing answers on the same issue.”