US Seeks First Brands Discovery Halt to Protect Criminal Case

The US government asked a federal judge to pause discovery in auto parts maker First Brands Group LLC’s bankruptcy lawsuit against former CEO Patrick James, arguing he could take advantage of civil procedures to potentially intimidate witnesses in the criminal case against him.

“Absent a stay of discovery, the Patrick James Defendants will likely continue to exploit civil procedural and discovery rules to circumvent the careful limits on criminal discovery in the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure designed to prevent, among other things, perjury and witness intimidation,” the government said in its motion to intervene filed Thursday in the US ...