Opinion ID: 2585525
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: discouraging abusive litigation practices

Text: The Matsuuras argue that this court should allow the defendants to be held liable for fraud in a subsequent, collateral action to dissuade abusive litigation practices. Other jurisdictions have noted that other established remedies, including court sanctions, contempt proceedings, criminal prosecutions, and disciplinary actions against attorneys already serve to discourage litigation misconduct. See Florida Evergreen I, 135 F.Supp.2d at 1283 (citations omitted); Levin, 639 So.2d at 608; Silberg, 266 Cal.Rptr. 638, 786 P.2d at 370-71. Thus, we must examine the efficacy of established remedies for litigation misconduct and the benefits of allowing a subsequent, collateral proceeding for fraud. Criminal contempt, attorney discipline, and criminal prosecution deter the type of litigation misconduct alleged in the instant case. However, none of these remedies compensate the victims of such misconduct. Criminal contempt is used to punish past defiance of a court's judicial authority, thereby vindicating the court.  LeMay v. Leander, 92 Hawai`i 614, 621, 994 P.2d 546, 553 (2000) (emphasis added) (citation omitted). Regarding attorney discipline, this court has stated that disciplinary proceedings do not provide a means of redress for one complaining to have been personally wronged by an attorney. Akinaka v. Disciplinary Bd. of the Hawai`i Supreme Court, 91 Hawai`i 51, 59, 979 P.2d 1077, 1085 (1999) (citation and internal quotation marks omitted). Similarly, the principal goals of the penal system, as declared by our legislature in 1986, are deterrence and punishment. State v. Medeiros, 89 Hawai`i 361, 369, 973 P.2d 736, 744 (1999) (citing Sen. Conf. Comm. Rep. No. 51-86, in 1986 Senate Journal, at 748). Thus, although criminal contempt, attorney discipline, and criminal prosecution deter and punish the kind of misconduct alleged in the instant case, the primary goal of these procedures is not to compensate parties injured by such misconduct. On the other hand, procedures exist to compensate parties for litigation misconduct. A civil contempt proceeding allows parties to pursue compensation for litigation misconduct. As this court has noted, in a civil contempt proceeding, the sanction is wholly remedial, serves only the purposes of the complainant, and is not intended as a deterrent to offenses against the public. LeMay, 92 Hawai`i at 621, 994 P.2d at 553 (citation omitted). However, to maintain a successful claim of civil contempt, a movant must establish that: (1) the order with which the contemnor failed to comply is clear and unambiguous; (2) the proof of non-compliance is clear and convincing; and (3) the contemnor has not diligently attempted to comply in a reasonable manner. LeMay, 92 Hawai`i at 625, 994 P.2d at 557 (citation omitted). We note that, but for the fact that the circuit court entered specific discovery orders in this case, the principal allegations of fraudulent conduct could not have been addressed through a civil contempt proceeding. Thus, the requirement of a clear and unambiguous court order limits the utility of civil contempt as a means of compensating parties injured by fraud committed during prior litigation proceedings. The HRCP also provide a means to compensate parties for injuries suffered from litigation misconduct. A successful motion under HRCP Rule 60(b) allows parties to vacate a judgment procured through fraud and to pursue compensation that is consistent with the true value of their claims. Additionally, upon successfully reopening a case through an HRCP Rule 60(b) proceeding, aggrieved parties may pursue appropriate sanctions in the course of relitigating their claim. See Virgin Islands Hous. Auth. v. David, 823 F.2d 764, 767 (3d Cir.1987). Moreover, based upon the egregious nature of DuPont's fraud in the Kawamata Farms case, this court construed HRCP Rule 60(b)(3) to allow an award of attorneys' fees and costs as affirmative relief in addition to the relief afforded in the prior order or judgment. Kawamata Farms, 86 Hawai`i at 259, 948 P.2d at 1100 (Under the circumstances of this case, based on the egregious nature of DuPont's fraud, we construe the HRCP so as not to disallow a remedy under HRCP Rule 60(b)(3) when there is a post-judgment discovery of fraud supported by clear and convincing evidence.). Thus, the HRCP provide a means for parties to receive compensation resulting from litigation misconduct. Although both civil contempt and HRCP Rule 60(b) provide remedies to a party aggrieved by litigation misconduct, we believe that the existence of these remedies does not oblige us to limit victims of fraud solely to these established remedies, given the nature and effect of fraud.