Mich. Federal Judge Awards Reinsurer Attorneys’ Fees Arising from Discovery Dispute

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A Michigan federal magistrate judge has awarded a reinsurer $3,180.72 in attorneys’ fees related to its motion to compel production of documents and electronically stored information from a cedent, ruling that the cedent’s failure to produce the documents was unjustified.

However, after reviewing the time entries of Westport Insurance Corp.’s counsel, Magistrate Judge Phillip J. Green of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan found the reinsurer is entitled to $3,180.72, rather than the $10,399.75 it sought.

Westport Insurance Corp.’s predecessor, Employers Reinsurance Corp., issued a reinsurance agreement to Michigan Millers Mutual Insurance …