Dillard Department Stores, Inc. v. Hall

In Dillard Department Stores, Inc. v. Hall, 909 S.W.2d 491, 492 (Tex. 1995), the plaintiff sued Dillard Department Stores for false arrest. 909 S.W.2d at 492. At the plaintiff's request, the trial court ordered Dillard Department Stores to produce "every claims file and incident report prepared from 1985 through 1990 in every lawsuit or claim that involved allegations of false arrest, civil rights violations, and excessive use of force" for each of its 227 stores located in twenty states. Id. at 491-92. The supreme court granted mandamus relief, holding that the requested discovery was "overly broad as a matter of law." Id. at 492. The court noted that the plaintiff admitted that he wanted the document production "to explore whether he can in good faith allege racial discrimination," and stated that the request was "the very kind of fishing expedition" that is not allowable under the rules of civil procedure. Id. In Dillard Department Stores, the requested discovery was sought in order to find out if the plaintiff could raise claims of racial discrimination against the company. See Dillard Dep't Stores, 909 S.W.2d at 492.