Amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure addressing the discovery of electronically-stored information are scheduled to take effect on December 1, 2006. With the Information Age in full swing, the roles of corporate IT departments and IT professionals have changed from merely keeping the company's computer systems up and running to acting as librarians and record keepers for all activities occurring on the company's computer system, including managing electronic data on networks spanning multiple servers, back-up tapes, hard drives, laptops and PDAs. Savvy litigants are increasingly pursuing electronic records of all types as part of the discovery process.
The amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure attempt to reduce costly discovery disputes pertaining to electronic discovery by offering structure, uniformity and guidance as to how electronic discovery should proceed. However, the rules also dictate a significant amount of work that must be done by litigants in the first 120 days after commencement of the lawsuit. From the beginning of the litigation, litigants must work closely with their IT departments and litigation counsel to ensure compliance with electronic discovery rules. Penalties for non-compliance with the electronic discovery rules can be devastating, ranging from significant monetary penalties to dismissal of lawsuits.
Vol. 53, June 2010