eDiscovery Daily Blog
Sedona Conference Updates Guide for Judges – eDiscovery Trends
Last year, The Sedona Conference® made a public comments version of the Cooperation Proclamation: Resources for the Judiciary available on the Sedona Conference website. The Resources for the Judiciary document aims to provide judges with a foundation for creating a collaborative and non-adversarial approach to managing eDiscovery. Now, its Judicial Resources guide has been updated and the free version is available on the Sedona Conference web site.
In addition to a Preface that outlines the Vision, Mission and Goal for the Resources, the guide includes the following sections:
- I. Introduction: Discusses the difference between “active case management” (proactive) and “discovery management” (reactive), while urging judges to take an active case management model approach;
- II. Review of Existing Literature on E-Discovery for Judges: A compilation of various resources for judges to become more familiar with eDiscovery, including everything from the 2006 amendments to the Federal Rules to local rules and pilot projects, such as the Model Order for Patent eDiscovery;
- III. General Recommendations for Judges: A list of seven recommendations for how judges handle eDiscovery issues in their cases, along with supporting information and resources;
- IV. The Stages of Litigation from a Judge’s Perspective: Sections for twenty different stages, ranging from Preservation to Post-Judgment Costs.
Creation of the new edition was led by senior editors Ronald Hedges (a retired magistrate judge from the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, now a consultant) and Kenneth Withers (Sedona’s director of judicial education) with Karen Van Allen serving as editorial coordinator. Judicial Reviewers were:
- Hon. Ralph Artigliere, 10th Judicial Circuit Court, Florida (ret.)
- Hon. John M. Facciola, U.S. Magistrate Judge, District of the District of Columbia
- Hon. Peter Flynn, Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois
- Hon. Elizabeth D. Laporte, U.S. Magistrate Judge, Northern District of California
- Hon. Elizabeth M. Schwabedissen, General Magistrate, 11th Judicial Circuit Court, Florida
- Hon. Craig B. Shaffer, U.S. Magistrate Judge, District of Colorado
Apparently, the web site will also have a special password-protected collaboration area exclusively for judges to comment, suggest resources or even submit sample orders, enabling those judges to freely communicate without concern about eavesdropping from outside parties. And, as always, to submit a public comment, you can download a public comment form here, complete it and fax (yes, fax) it to The Sedona Conference® at 928-284-4240. You can also email a general comment to them at tsc@sedona.net.
So, what do you think? Will this guide make for a smoother discovery process? Please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.
Disclaimer: The views represented herein are exclusively the views of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views held by CloudNine Discovery. eDiscoveryDaily is made available by CloudNine Discovery solely for educational purposes to provide general information about general eDiscovery principles and not to provide specific legal advice applicable to any particular circumstance. eDiscoveryDaily should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a lawyer you have retained and who has agreed to represent you.