No strikes.

The striking of an answer, pursuant to CPLR 3126, is a drastic remedy which requires a clear showing that the failure to comply with a discovery demand was willful and contumacious, according to the Second Department, in Denoyelles v. Gallagher, which was decided on May 29, 2007. The court said that, similarly, under the common-law doctrine of spoliation, a pleading may be struck only when, because of the negligent or intentional destruction of key evidence, the non-responsible party is unable to prove its claim or defense. Here, the court found no evidence that the so-called modification of the defendant's computer records was done in bad faith, or that, because of the modification, the plaintiff was left with no appropriate means of proving its claim.