RyCon Specialty Foods, Inc. v. Wellshire Farms, Inc.
United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania
2011 WL 1342998 (2011)
RyCon Specialty Foods, Inc. (RyCon) (plaintiff) contracted with Wellshire Farms, Inc. (Wellshire) (defendant) to have Wellshire distribute RyCon's hormone-free cheese products to other buyers. RyCon sued Wellshire for allegedly failing to pay $229,584.53 owed for the products, and Wellshire counterclaimed for breach of contract, alleging RyCon had breached an oral or implied agreement making Wellshire the exclusive master distributor of RyCon's products. Wellshire sought discovery not only about the parties' own business arrangement but also detailed information on RyCon's relationships with its vendors, producers, slicers, packers, shippers, customers, brokers, and finances; RyCon objected, and Wellshire moved to compel.
Whether a party will be compelled to produce discovery of such marginal relevance that the potential harm presented by the discovery would outweigh the ordinary presumption in favor of broad disclosure.