Bow Tie Law

Production of Text Messages Protocol

The sensitivity courts are showing to text messages and public employees’ reasonable expectation of privacy has been very impressive.  This sensitivity is evident in cases such as Quon v. Arch Wireless Operating Co., Inc., which found that a police officer had a reasonable expectation of privacy in his messages, due[…]

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Ethics of e-Discovery (or, Teaching Lawyers Ballet)

“Watching an incompetent lawyer is like watching a clumsy ballerina.”  Magistrate Judge John M. Facciola, February 4, 2009  Magistrate Judge John M. Facciola’s keynote at Legal Tech 2009 had a call to action for lawyers to have certifications and standards of competence regarding technology.  In light of how everyday life[…]

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Discovery Production Workflow: Lessons from Magistrate Judges Facciola & Grimm

In my prior posting Playing with Fire: Producing ESI as Paper we looked at the dangers of producing ESI as paper.  In addition to the legal analysis, Judge Facciola outlined a workflow for the parties in Covad Communications Company v. Revonet, Inc. The Defendants represented to the Court that it[…]

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Playing with Fire: Producing ESI as Paper

“…Revonet’s producing the e-mails only in hard copy played with fire. ” Magistrate Judge John Facciola, Covad Communications Company v. Revonet, Inc.  I have blogged on parties failing to state a form of production in prior postings and producing parties attempting to produce ESI as paper or non-searchable TIFFs.   In[…]

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Back on the Record: Tips on Deposition Preparation with Technology

I have taken and defended a good number of depositions.  Preparing for deposition requires thoroughness, thoughtfulness, and not being tied to your question outline like a student actor reading a script.  Whether you are “old school” or “new school,” there are many ways to enhance your deposition practice with litigation[…]

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What Happens When the Requesting Party Does Not State a Form of Production?

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure Rule 34 allows for a requesting party to state the form of production in their request. In the event a requesting party does not state the form of production, the responding party can state the form of production in their reply. However, if no party[…]

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The e-Discovery Chase: Strategies to Reduce Electronically Stored Information in Discovery Requests

All of our tools and toys that generate electronically stored information can frustrate law firms with high e-Discovery costs.  Lawyers who choose to have their discovery productions printed can have nearly 10,000 times more paper than 10 years ago.[1] It is difficult to visualize how “big” ESI can be. WIRED[…]

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