On July 5, Florida became the 29th state to adopt specific electronic data discovery rules for its state courts. The new rules, which will take effect on Sept. 1, generally track the 2006 amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, but provide greater specificity, a tighter framework, and better guidelines.
As the “Committee Notes” suggest, Florida’s rules provide better guidance for parties to adopt the principles enumerated by The Sedona Conference Cooperation Proclamation, and for parties to better manage the costs and challenges associated with e-discovery up-front, with one caveat: Lawyers must know and understand their client’s systems at the outset of a matter to take advantage of the new rules.
