On October 7, 2022, President Biden signed an executive order implementing the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework. Announced in March, this framework replaces the Privacy Shield program that the EU Court of Justice invalidated in July 2020 with its Schrems II decision. That decision stated that the United States did not provide a level of
EU Member States to Investigate EU-U.S. Transfers That Rely Solely on Invalidated Safe Harbor: Starting Now
Certain European Union (EU) Member States’ data protection authorities (DPAs) have already started to announce investigations and or “prudential measures” for data transfers solely relying on the invalidated “U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Framework” (Safe Harbor).
In the aftermath of the announcement of the “EU-U.S. Privacy Shield” (Privacy Shield), the Article 29 Working Party (WP29), comprised of all EU Member State DPAs, announced an extension of the “grace period” for U.S. data transfers based on alternative transfer mechanisms (e.g., EU standard contractual clauses and Binding Corporate Rules) other than Safe Harbor, at least until the Privacy Shield has been reviewed by WP29 (likely by the end of March 2016).
Technology Assisted Review Finally Enters the Spotlight
After early concerns about the defending the results of the technology and whether courts would accept its use, Technology Assisted Review (“TAR”) has now entered the spotlight as an alternative to more traditional forms of document review. These technologies, commonly referred to as predictive coding, continue to win over both clients and counsel, who have
Information Governance Takes Center Stage
Information Governance” has become a popular buzzword in the data law and management space, and it means much more than electronic records management on steroids. It encompasses data security, privacy, information management and e-discovery, and particularly the intersection and synergy of these functions to form an integrated and coordinated approach to managing an organization’s data
Crowell & Moring Releases “Data Law Trends & Developments” and Announces Expanded “Data Law Insights” Blog
We are pleased to announce the publication of a report titled “Data Law Trends & Developments: E-Discovery, Privacy, Cyber-Security & Information Governance.” The report explores recent trends and anticipated future developments on critical issues related to the intersection of technology and the law, which affect a wide range of companies and industries. In addition, the report highlights key cases and issues to watch in 11 areas of data law, including: information governance, cybersecurity, social media, technology-assisted review, criminal law, regulatory, cooperation, privacy, cross border transfers, bring your own device (BYOD), and privilege.
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Kansas Federal District Court Revamps ESI Guidelines To Address Developments in E-Discovery Case Law, TAR and Social Media Evidence
Earlier this month, the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas “substantially revised its ESI guidelines to address that particularly critical and rapidly evolving subject.” As part of an ongoing effort to adapt its local rules and guidelines to ensure “that civil litigation actually is handled in the ‘just, speedy, and inexpensive’ manner contemplated by Rule 1 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure,” the Court’s Bench-Bar Committee approved recommendations made by various working groups of its Rule 1 Task Force. That task force project included a working group dedicated to e-discovery, and the result is that the Court’s ESI Guidelines have been revamped to incorporate the growing volume of e-discovery case law and guidance published in recent years.
Now twelve pages instead of its original five, the revised Guidelines include various notable updates. For example, the Guidelines now address the use of technology-assisted review (TAR), they reference the Sedona Conference Cooperation Proclamation, and they instruct counsel about the availability of Federal Rule of Evidence 502(d) to protect against waivers of privilege. The new ESI Guidelines undoubtedly place the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas as one of the leading federal courts in the area of civil litigation e-discovery.
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Judge Grewal Takes a Reasonable Approach to Defining the Scope of the Duty to Preserve
It can be difficult to identify the point at which the duty to preserve relevant information for litigation is triggered. What is often more difficult, however, is defining the scope of what must be preserved after the duty has been triggered. Given the vast (and growing) volume of electronically stored information (ESI) typically maintained, organizations must have information governance policies and practices in place that routinely destroy ESI that is no longer needed for business purposes. Those policies and practices must be suspended with respect to ESI that is subject to a legal duty to preserve, but defining the scope of what must be retained can be challenging, particularly at the early stages when litigation is reasonably anticipated or a complaint has just been filed, which is when these decisions are made.
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ITC Issues Final Rules on E-Discovery, Including Specific Limitations on Production of ESI, and Mechanism for Addressing Inadvertent Disclosure of Privileged Documents
More than seven months after the International Trade Commission proposed changes to its procedural rules relating to e-discovery “in order to increase the efficiency of its section 337 investigations” and “to address concerns that have arisen about the scope of discovery in Commission proceedings,” on May 21, 2013 the Commission issued final rules adopting the proposed amendments with some revisions. The new rules are applicable to investigations instituted after June 20, 2013. Section 337 investigations are administrative proceedings before the ITC, authorized under 19 U.S.C § 1337, to determine whether there has been unfair competition—typically patent infringement—in the importation of articles into the U.S. The only remedy is injunctive relief, typically an order excluding the articles from entry into the U.S. The amended rules are intended “to reduce expensive, inefficient, unjustified, or unnecessary discovery practices in” Section 337 proceedings.
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When Should Discovery-Related Sanctions Be Imposed on Parties, Inside Counsel and/or Outside Counsel?
We all know that discovery is never perfect, particularly when it involves the collection, review and production of large volumes of electronically stored information. But when is discovery good enough? And what standards should govern when one party challenges another party’s production as deficient?
These are extremely difficult issues for courts to resolve and, not surprising, courts have not been entirely uniform in their approach. However, that’s only the first step because when a court finds that discovery has been so deficient that sanctions are warranted, it must then determine what sanctions to impose and whether to impose them on the party, inside counsel, outside counsel, or some combination thereof.
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Federal Court and Agency E-Discovery Rules and Guidelines
With the increased importance of e-discovery in litigation and investigations, many federal district courts and government agencies have enacted specific rules, forms, or other guidance addressing the discovery of electronically stored information (ESI) and governing the conduct of practitioners as it relates to ESI. To help you keep informed of these rules, regulations, and guidelines