In Crews v. Avco, No. 70756-6-I (Wash. Ct. App. April 6, 2015), the Washington Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court's finding of spoliation by defendant Avco Corp. and, more importantly, its imposition of devastating sanctions, including the deeming of all of plaintiff Paul Thomas Crews' allegations admitted and the striking of all of the defendant's affirmative defenses. The reasoning provided by the court, both on and below the surface, is compelling, but runs contrary to trending legislative and judicial pronouncements.

In Crews, a rented plane crashed, killing the pilot, her 10-year-old daughter and a family friend. The pilot's husband, the plaintiff in the case, sued for injuries and wrongful death, naming multiple defendants involved in the manufacture and care of the plane. The friend's estate also brought suit against the same defendants and named the pilot's estate as an additional defendant. The plaintiffs alleged that engine failure, in particular a faulty carburetor, caused the plane crash. The defendants included the corporation that manufactured and sold the plane's engine, as well as the corporation that installed a new “carburetor float” in the engine in 1999. The plaintiffs alleged that the floats were defective, that a faulty one was responsible for the plane crash, and that the co-defendants were aware the floats were defective but withheld this information and failed to warn about the defects. Avco asserted several affirmative defenses.

The plaintiffs made numerous discovery demands and eventually moved to compel production of documents responsive to their requests. Avco opposed. The family friend's estate countered that Avco withheld documents reflecting its role in testing, reviewing, approving and certifying the carburetor float. As support, the plaintiff attached a series of emails between the engine and carburetor manufacturer's employees “reflecting” Avco's “knowledge of defects” in the floats. The friend's estate obtained these emails in discovery produced by the carburetor manufacturer. “The subject line of the [emails] was 'Plastic Float Leaking — Concerns,'” according to the opinion. The emails discussed the problems with the floats, Avco's concern regarding these problems, and how the carburetor manufacturer monitored the situation and discussed the problems with Avco.