Catagory:Market Announcements

In an article in the National Law Journal, Carolyn Southerland writes, "Lawyers accustomed to what has been described by at least one federal district judge as "drive-by" meet and confers under the federal rules should get ready to park and prepare for an extended conversation. Whether one is a data producer (traditionally defendants) or a data requester (traditionally plaintiffs), the amendments to Rule 26(f) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure are going to profoundly affect parties’ discussions in "meet and confer" discussions concerning discovery.

For Luddite lawyers, these rule changes will require that they venture into a world that they dislike and perhaps on some level fear. But just as lawyers have survived past changes in the rules, they will survive these, too, and their clients and practices may well be better for it." 

Click here for the full story.

From the New York Times:

“Wall Street powerhouse Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc. has agreed to pay a $15 million civil fine to settle federal regulators’ charges that it repeatedly failed to provide tens of thousands of e-mails that they sought in major investigations over several years, federal regulators said Wednesday.

The Securities and Exchange Commission announced the settlement with Morgan Stanley, which neither admitted nor denied the allegations but did consent to a permanent injunction against future violations of the securities laws. In a civil lawsuit filed in federal court in Washington, the SEC also accused the investment firm of making “numerous misstatements” regarding the status of its efforts to preserve and produce the requested e-mails.”

Read the entire story here.

In an email to Martha Dawson last week, Hon. Richard E. Best provided his compliments and thanks to Preston Gates for publishing and maintaining our electronic discovery case database.

“What makes [the database] even better is the accuracy and precision in which cases are summarized. The site is not only a tribute to Preston Gates but a valuable contribution to lawyers throughout the nation who are just getting up to par on this topic. It is in my opinion an example of the best attributes of our profession where lawyers help lawyers to improve the competence of the profession as a whole.”

Judge Best is a retired 29-year San Francisco Superior Court judge who is most commonly associated with law and motion hearings involving civil discovery. Today, he is a discovery consultant and private judge, as well as a commentator and frequent speaker on electronic discovery issues. His website, California Civil Discovery Law, can be found here.

On behalf of everyone at Preston Gates: thank you!

A story by Jason Krause focusing on the effective use of search terms in electronic discovery on ABAJournal.com.

In 2000, Credit Suisse First Boston Corporation (“CSFB”) employed Frank Quattrone as head of its Global Technology Group (the “Tech Group”). In that capacity, Quattrone managed approximately 400 technology investment bankers from the firm’s Palo Alto, California office. The Tech Group was responsible for CSFB’s investment-banking activity related to technology companies, including underwriting services. The Tech Group provided services to two types of customers – tech company issuer-clients undertaking offerings of equity-based securities and individual customers who traded securities as clients of the Tech Group’s Personal Client Services subgroup. Read More

The new Local Rule 26.1 creates a duty on the part of counsel to “inquire into the computerized information-management systems used by their clients so that they are knowledgeable about the operation of those systems, including how information is stored and how it can be retrieved.” The new rule also requires counsel to “inform their clients of the need to preserve information stored in computerized information-management systems so that information relevant to the claims or defenses in the case is not in any way destroyed.” In addition, the new rule sets out a number of e-discovery topics the parties must discuss in their Local Rule 16.3(a) conference of attorneys. Click “Continue Reading” below for the the full text of the new rule. Read More

The National Archives and Records Administration (“NARA”) announced that it will be revising regulations to provide for appropriate management and disposition of very short-term email by allowing management of such records within the email system. Disposition of Electronic Mail Records with Short Retention Periods, Final Rule, 71 Fed. Reg. 8806-8808 (Feb. 21, 2006) (to be codified at 36 C.F.R. pt. 1234). The effective date for changes is March 23, 2006. Read More