The US is considering possible rule changes in relation to preservation. The UK is tackling case management and costs management. Australia is chewing over the recent report on electronic discovery. New Zealand has a new ediscovery practice direction coming shortly. There are are different points of view being expressed about all these things, but they have in common that their underlying problems, however difficult, are capable of resolution. We may have different views on what must be done to reduce the time and costs of managing electronic discovery, but there is no deep conflict as to the objective within each jurisdiction.

Cross-border eDiscovery, like anything else which involves the laws and practices of more than one jurisdiction, inevitably has an additional dimension.  That goes beyond relatively straightforward questions, occurring in many matters of law, as to  whose rules to play by, because discovery often raises direct conflicts which seem incapable of resolution. This operates at many levels, from fundamental differences of principle down to matters of mechanics. If your starting point is that one jurisdiction favours openness above all whilst another believes that privacy and data protection rules are paramount, then real conflicts are inevitable.

The Huron Legal Institute is giving a complimentary breakfast briefing about Cross-border eDiscovery on 21st September in New York, starting at 8.30am. The speakers come from the judiciary, from corporate counsel and from lawyers skilled in this area as well as from Huron Legal, and the agenda is as comprehensive a survey of the issues and approaches as one could hope for.

The program is here and it includes a link to enable registration. I know most of the participants and am willing to guarantee that this event will amply repay your attendance.

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