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Reed v. Furr's Supermarkets8/22/2000
aration for trial. Id. at 11, 780 P.2d at 1158.
In Medina, our Supreme Court construed Sandoval, making clear that several factors that appeared in Sandoval to be prerequisites to the sanction of dismissal for discovery abuse, are in fact not prerequisites. See Medina, 117 N.M. at 166-67, 870 P.2d at 128-29. First, the Supreme Court stated that Sandoval did not hold that the party moving for dismissal was required to show that the misrepresentations deceived the moving party in fact or that the party relied on the false information. See Medina, 117 N.M. at 166, 870 P.2d at 128. Second, the Court construed Sandoval as not requiring, as a prerequisite to dismissal, that the information misrepresented be "critical to preparation for trial." Id. Finally, the Court stated that while dismissal is "guided by the extent to which preparation for trial has been obstructed," the ultimate importance of the information misrepresented is not a precondition to dismissal. Id. at 166-67, 870 P.2d at 128-29.
Based on Medina, we conclude that when a plaintiff misrepresents information during discovery, dismissal is not dependent upon whether the information goes to the merits of the case or upon "the ultimate importance of the false or deceptive information." Id. at 166-67, 870 P.2d at 128-29. Instead, the degree to which a plaintiff's misrepresentations obstruct further discovery should guide the district court's decision to dismiss; however, such obstruction is not the only factor to consider. We emphasize that the touchstone to the propriety of dismissal is whether the deceitful party acted willfully, in bad faith, or in "callous disregard for its [discovery] responsibilities." Id. at 166, 870 P.2d at 128. Willfulness and bad faith are most certainly prerequisites for the severe sanction of dismissal, although the other considerations discussed in Bustillos and Sandoval may be additional factors to consider when analyzing the propriety of dismissal as a sanction for discovery abuse.
The district court is vested with wide discretion to impose discovery sanctions. See Medina, 117 N.M. at 166, 870 P.2d at 128. The district court exercises its discretion based upon the type of false information and its overall impact on the non-deceiving party's ability to prepare for trial. However, before imposing dismissal as a sanction, the district court must find that the false information arose as a result of willfulness, bad faith, or callous disregard for the party's discovery obligations. See id. Of course, even in the face of a finding of willfulness, bad faith, or callous disregard for one's discovery obligations, a district court may impose a lesser sanction in the exercise of its discretion. Cf. Rule 1-037(B).
In this case, the district court specifically found that Plaintiff's misrepresentations concerning her medical history demonstrated "an intentional pattern of deception." The district court also found that one of Plaintiff's misrepresentations alone might not have been egregious enough to dismiss her case. However, the sheer volume of misrepresentations persuaded the court that dismissal was appropriate. The record supports this conclusion. The record reflects that Plaintiff gave false or misleading answers in at least twenty-one instances to either FSI's interrogatories or FSI's deposition questions. The volume of misleading information also persuades us that Plaintiff's misrepresentations were willful. The district court, therefore, did not abuse its discretion when it dismissed Plaintiff's case.
2. Credibility
Plaintiff also argues that the district court improperly sat as a fact finder at the hearing on the motion to di
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