Presentation
Bill Meyers, a principal in the firm's Litigation Group, moderated a panel discussion and presentation on the 2015 amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure regarding electronic discovery. The panel considered the amendments impact on:
- the scope of discovery under Rule 26, including "proportionality," and the elimination of the phrase, "reasonably calculated to the lead to the discovery of admissible evidence;"
- the form and substance of objections to documents requests; and
- an attempt, in Rule 37, to create a uniform standard for determining if sanctions are warranted as a response to a party's failure to preserve evidence, and a rejection of the idea that mere negligence, without intent, could warrant severe sanctions (e.g. default judgments and adverse inference instructions).
Nine months on from the effective date of these amendments, the panel summarized the important decisions that have applied the new rules. The panel also discussed the changes to Rule 16 and the greater emphasis on early and active case management by the district judge and how those changes have and will impact the resolution of discovery disputes.
The Panel also included, Avi Kumin, Esq., partner at Katz, Marshall & Banks, LLP, Washington, D.C., Chandra Napora, Esq., Morgan Verkamp LLC, Cincinnati, OH, Cristine Irvin Phillips, Esq., Assistant United States Attorney/Deputy Chief of Civil Frauds Unit, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
The Panel took place at TAFEF Annual Conference in Washington, D.C. on September 16, 2016.