Judge Bounced from Case Due to ‘Hell Yes’ Outburst with Lathrop & Gage Lawyer

A federal appeals court has ruled (PDF) that a Kansas City, Mo., judge must be removed from a case involving Shell Oil Co. because of an outburst fueled by a “protracted and contentious” discovery dispute.

The St. Louis-based 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said U.S. District Judge Dean Whipple had been provoked by both sides in the case, but he should nonetheless be removed because of an appearance of partiality, the National Law Journal reports.

The court cited Whipple’s angry words in an exchange with the plaintiff’s lawyer, Fred Starrett of Lathrop & Gage, the NLJ story says. The appeals court vacated Whipple's order dismissing the case for discovery violations and remanded for a new judge to reconsider sanctions.

Whipple had issued four different orders that required the plaintiff, a mini-mart owner, to give Shell 58 documents in all. In a December 2006 sanctions hearing, Whipple asked if Starrett had turned over the documents. “To them?” Starrett asked.

The judge’s reply, contained in the appeals court’s March 24 opinion: “Well, hell yes. Why would you ask a question like that? Hell, yes, to the defendant. … I kept telling you to produce stuff, expert stuff. You ducked. You wove. You did everything to keep from producing them. You go to the 8th Circuit. They tell you to produce them, and you still goddamn don’t produce them. Now what the hell do you not understand? You must produce them. Jesus Christ, I don't want any more ducking and weaving from you on those 58 documents."

Starrett suggested the court had not ordered production of all the documents four times, prompting Whipple to say: "That's it. I'm done. I'm granting the defendant's motion to dismiss this case for systematic abuse of the discovery process. … This case is gone. I’m dismissing it. What a disgrace to the legal system in the Western District of Missouri. Prepare the proposed order. We’re done. We are done, done, done. What a disgrace. It’s not your fault, it’s your client. He’s coached, he’s ducked, and he’s hid documents. We’re done."