Gilead Sciences, Inc. v. Merck & Co.
United States District Court for the Northern District of California
2016 WL 146574 (2016)
In a patent infringement suit over compound PSI-6130, Merck (plaintiff) obtained a photograph showing tubes in Gilead's (defendant) lab, one labeled with a molecular weight matching PSI-6130, and sought discovery of all the tubes' contents; Gilead objected, presenting evidence that many compounds share the same molecular weight, that Merck already had information about the tubes' contents, and a letter confirming the tubes did not contain PSI-6130. Merck moved to compel further production.
Whether, under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26, in the absence of any reason to doubt a party's tendered proof about the identity of something in evidence, a court takes a producing party at its word and declines to require additional discovery production on the issue.