The Case for Meaningful, Rule-Based Guidance on Pa. E-Discovery

eDiscovery continues to be the thorn in the side of the legal community.

In a joint commentary from Michael B. Hayes and Stephen A. Grossman, the authors note that eDiscovery continues to be viewed as complex, expensive and time consuming by the legal community. They suggest that these frustrations could be alleviated with clear rules regarding the discovery of electronically stored information (ESI).

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court is currently reviewing a proposal to alter state and local rules and provide general guidelines for dealing with eDiscovery in the state. The proposal includes a request to officially include ESI on the list of permissible discovery, reflecting the current reality. The proposed revisions also includes courts taking into account the costs of searching ESI on a case by case basis as well as utilising discovery tools to ensure the costs are shared fairly.

Hayes and Grossman welcome the proposal but are concerned that it doesn’t go far enough to address the complexities surrounding eDiscovery and the great variety of ESI which is now potentially discoverable.

Read the full article here: The Case for Meaningful, Rule-Based Guidance on Pa. E-Discovery