Ride the Lightning

FAQ: WHAT ARE THE STATES DOING ABOUT ESI RULES?

October 27, 2007

In the last several conferences at which we have spoken, attendees have asked how ESI is being handled by the states. States have been steadily adopting the new federal rules relating to the discovery of ESI, often altering them to conform with state procedures. New rules in Idaho and New Jersey took effect in 2006, while rules in Indiana, Minnesota, Montana and New Hampshire became effective this year. Arizona’s rules are effective starting on January 1st, 2008. Proposed rules are on the horizon in Maryland, Nebraska and Ohio. Studying the issue are (and there are probably more) committees at the California, Illinois and Tennessee courts and the Washington State Bar Association and the Boyd-Graves Conference and the Advisory Committee on Rules of the Judicial Council in Virginia.

Related old news: As my friend Jeffrey Allen reminded me at a recent conference, a lot of folks missed the fact that the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws/Uniform Law Commission approved a new act, the Uniform Rules Relating to Discovery of Electronically Stored Information. The Act was approved on August 2nd and the text of the Act may be found at http://www.law.upenn.edu/bll/archives/ulc/udoera/2007am_final.htm

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