LCJ and Defense Organizations Promote Bold Rule Reforms in a Comment on Duke Subcommittee's Proposed Amendments
Jun 05, 2012

LCJ and the defense bar organizations - DRI-The Voice of the Defense Bar, the Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel, and the International Association of Defense counsel submitted a formal comment on June 5th to both the Advisory Committee on Civil Rules and Standing Committee on Civil Rules.

LCJ and Defense Organizations Promote Bold Rule Reforms in a Formal Comment on the Duke Subcommittee’s Proposed Amendments

                In anticipation of the June 11-12, 2012 meeting of the Standing Committee on Civil Rules, LCJ and the defense bar organizations - DRI-The Voice of the Defense Bar, the Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel, and the International Association of Defense counsel – submitted a formal comment today to both the Advisory Committee on Civil Rules and Standing Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure. The comment, which is titled “The Need for Meaningful Rule Amendments: Preliminary Views on the Duke Subcommittee Proposals” and is attached to this email as a PDF, focuses on the fact that the Duke Subcommittee’s proposed amendments amount to a mere tweaking of the rules and that, as such, they will fail to alleviate the unfair, costly burdens of over-preservation and excessive discovery that are currently plaguing the litigation system.

                This comment also supplements previous LCJ comments by once again stressing the urgent need for a package of interrelated, broad-based amendments to the rules on discovery, preservation, and cost allocation. As LCJ outlined in the comment, such a package would include bold amendments that reevaluate the premise and focus of discovery, especially e-discovery; develop clear preservation standards without creating new pre-litigation preservation duties that are inconsistent with federal authority and state common law; and deter runaway litigation costs with reasonable cost allocations rules premised on economic incentives.

                We appreciate your continued support of LCJ’s reform initiatives as well as the excellent work on this comment by Bob Owen, Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP; Bree Kelly, K&L Gates LLP; Dick Caldwell, Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell; and Robert Levy, Exxon Mobil Corporation.

                The Subcommittee’s proposals are available for reference in the materials for the Advisory Committee meeting in Ann Arbor March 22-23, 2012 and in the Advisory Committee’s Report to the Standing Committee.