MILLBROOK OWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC. v. HAMILTON STANDARD ET AL., 257 Conn. 1

Summary

On appeal, the owners association contended that the trial court lacked authority to impose the sanction of dismissal, because: (1) the owners association had no duty to disclose its expert witnesses under Conn. Gen. Prac. Book, R. Super. Ct. § 13-4(4) before the pleadings were closed; and (2) § 13-4(4) limited the available sanctions for improper disclosure regarding such witnesses to the exclusion of their testimony. The state supreme court held that it did not need to decide either of the owners association's contentions on the merits, because the trial court acted, not pursuant to § 13-4(4), but pursuant to either Conn. Gen. Prac. Book, R. Super. Ct. § 13-14 or its inherent power to impose reasonable sanctions. The state supreme court further held, however, that the trial court abused its discretion in dismissing the action, because the conditions of compliance with the trial court's disclosure order were not articulated with reasonable clarity, and the record did not establish ...