Where is the Safe Harbor: Is Rule 37(e) Living Up to Low Expectations?

In the debates leading up to the 2006 amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure,  much controversy was stirred by the proposal to add a  “safe harbor” from spoliation sanctions.  The version of the safe harbor that was enacted in what is now Rule 37(e) bears little resemblance to what was originally offered for public comment; continued reference to the rule as a “safe harbor” is more often than not sarcastic.   Given the gaping caveats that characterize the rule, its adoption was met with widespread skepticism and an apparent consensus that litigants should not expect the “safe harbor” to provide much protection in the event of a spoliation storm.

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Posted by Adam I. Cohen at 1:01 PM - Categories: safe harbor | Spoilation

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The Long and Winding Road

The identification/collection process is a pivotal aspect of the discovery endeavor. Although an unsuccessful collection will not necessarily make or break a case, it can cause you to miss deadlines, essentially placing you on “sanction row.” Where or when you start and who you speak to can be daunting questions at the outset of any litigation. Approaching the task pragmatically, with your case drivers in hand, and some good ole’ common sense usually makes for a good start. How many of you reading this blog have started down, at least at first glance, a clear path only to learn that it is a long and winding road that seems to lead no where?

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Posted by Salvatore Mancuso at 12:16 PM - Categories: Collection Process

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Social Media: The Next Frontier in e-Discovery (Part 2)

For those of us who live in the greater Washington DC metro area, ‘Snowpocalypse 2010’ has consumed our last week.  In addition to the massive amount of snow and an unprecedented four-day shut-down of the Federal Government, there has been a vast amount of information shared and distributed through social networking channels.  And not just the traditional Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube sites – the local news stations and newspapers are full of content, video, pictures, and posts from readers and listeners.

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Posted by Juilan Ackert at 11:09 AM - Categories: Social Media | Future Trends

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A Conversation with The Posse List

Posted by Nicole Steckman at 3:43 PM - Categories: Future Trends | CLE

Before the snow started to reach record amounts in the nation’s capital, several members of the Georgetown CLE team had the opportunity to visit with Greg from the Posse List as part of their series “Data! Data! Data!” – Cures for General Counsel’s ESI Nightmares.”   To see the complete conversation, please click here.

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Microsoft’s Cloud Computing Initiative: An Opportunity to Advance International Ediscovery?

On January 20, with well choreographed fanfare that included white papers, a press release, an op-ed, and a keynote address at a Brookings Institution policy forum, Microsoft called upon Congress to modernize electronic data privacy and security laws to build consumer confidence in cloud computing. 

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Posted by Joe Baker at 6:02 PM - Categories: Cloud Computing | International Concerns

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Hearts and Minds

It is almost two months since my posting appeared here entitled “Be Not Diminished.” It received a number of cogent comments (and critiques); that told me that what I believed to be the meaning behind my commentary had not been well-understood and that the lack of clarity was, most likely, my own fault. I was certainly not trying to defend “schlocky” e-discovery service providers or even, primarily, complain about the state of the business of vendors in general (which is, however, pretty grim in these fraught times).

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Posted by Robert Eisenberg at 11:22 AM - Categories: New Trends

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