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Gagliardo v. Peninsula Regional Medical Center
Citation: 467 F. App'x 237Docket: No. 11-1258
Court: Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit; February 23, 2012; Federal Appellate Court
Thomas J. Gagliardo, attorney for Plaintiff Deborah Parsons, appeals a district court order imposing $23,657.75 in sanctions against him under 28 U.S.C. § 1927. Gagliardo contends that the court abused its discretion, asserting he acted without bad faith, that no duplicative proceedings occurred, and that the Plaintiff's federal action was filed in good faith and dismissed for judicial economy without causing prejudice to the Defendant, Peninsula Regional Medical Center. The Metropolitan Washington Employment Lawyers Association submitted an amicus curiae brief, arguing that the district court erred in sanctioning Gagliardo for actions related to the Defendant's pursuit of § 1927 sanctions and for voluntarily dismissing a federal civil rights claim to pursue a related state law claim. The court clarified that § 1927 does not differentiate between winning and losing parties or the equities involved in a case but focuses on preventing abuse of court processes. The standard for reviewing a district court's imposition of § 1927 sanctions is for abuse of discretion, recognizing that the district court is better positioned to assess the facts and legal standards involved. The factual findings underpinning such awards are reviewed for clear error. After evaluating the record and the arguments presented, the court found no abuse of discretion in the district court's imposition of sanctions on Gagliardo, concluding that the sanctions were warranted for aspects of litigation that arose from his vexatious conduct. The court affirmed the district court's order. Oral argument was deemed unnecessary as the facts and legal issues were sufficiently presented in the submitted materials.