In New Rule on Discovery of Computerized Data the New Jersey Law Journal (October 23, 2003) reports on what may be an important new rule concerning discovery of digital data in federal cases brought in New Jersey. This rule does not yet seem to appear on the Court’s own web site.
According to the article “Local Rule 26.1(d), requires lawyers, at the very start of a case, to review their clients’ computer and information management systems ‘to understand how information is stored and how it can be retrieved.'” The article reports that parties need to try to reach agreement on the preservation, scope, types of media, and who bears the cost of discovering digital data.