Case Title: In re: Electronic Discovery & Adoption of Rule of Civil Procedure 26.1

Citation: 2009 Ark. 448

Docket Number: 

State: arkansas

Court: Arkansas Supreme Court

Date: 2009-09-24T00:00:00Z

Document:
Cite as 2009 Ark. 448 SUPREME COURT OF ARKANSAS No. 08-923 IN RE: ELECTRONIC DISCOVERY AND ADOPTION of RULE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE 26.1 Opinion Delivered September 24, 2009 PER CURIAM The Arkansas Bar Association petitioned the court to amend the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure by adding Rule 26.1 to address electronic discovery. The Bar’s draft was the work of its Task Force on Electronic Discovery. We referred the proposal to our Committee on Civil Practice. Subsequently, we published a proposed rule for comment on March 5, 2009. In re Electronic Discovery and Proposed Ark. R. Civ. P. 26.1, 2009 Ark. 127 (per curiam). Again, we thank the Arkansas Bar Association, the Task Force on Electronic Discovery, and the Committee on Civil Practice for their work on this project. We make no changes to the previously published draft, and we adopt, effective October 1, 2009, Ark. R. Civ. P. 26.1 as set out below. Cite as 2009 Ark. 448 Arkansas Rule of Civil Procedure 26.1. Electronic Discovery. (a) Definitions. In this rule: (1) “Discovery” means the process of providing information in a civil proceeding in the courts of this state pursuant to the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure or these rules. (2) “Electronic” means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. (3) “Electronically stored information” means information that is stored in an electronic medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. (4) “Person” means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, public corporation, government or governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality, or any other legal or commercial entity. (b) Supplemental and optional rule. This rule is intended to supplement the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure, and the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure shall govern if there is a conflict between this supplemental rule and the Rules of Civil Procedure. The rule is optional because either the parties must agree that it will apply, or the circuit court must order that it will apply on motion for good cause shown. (c) Conference, plan, and report. (1) In any proceeding in circuit court, the parties may agree to pursue electronic discovery pursuant to this rule or the court may so order on motion for good cause shown. Any such agreement or motion shall be made within 120 days after the date that the complaint was filed. The court, however, may extend or reopen this period for good cause. Within 30 days of an agreement or order to proceed under this rule, the parties shall confer. At this conference, the parties shall discuss and plan for the following issues: (A) any issues relating to preservation of discoverable information; 2 Cite as 2009 Ark. 448 (B) the form in which each type of the information will be produced; (C) the period within which the information will be produced; (D) the method for asserting or preserving claims of privilege or of protection of the information such as trial-preparation materials, including the manner in which such claims may be asserted after production; (E) the method for asserting or preserving confidentiality and proprietary status of information relating to a party or a person not a party to the proceeding; (F) whether allocation among the parties of the expense of production is appropriate; and, (G) any other issue relating to the discovery of electronically stored information. (2) Following the planning conference, the parties shall: (A) develop a proposed plan relating to discovery of the information; and (B) not later than 14 days after the conference under subdivision (c)(1), submit to the court a written report that summarizes the plan and states the position of each party as to any issue about which they are unable to agree. (d) Order governing discovery. (1) In a civil proceeding, the court may issue an order governing the discovery of electronically stored information pursuant to: (A) a motion by a party seeking discovery of the information or by a party or person from which discovery of the information is sought; (B) a stipulation of the parties and of any person not a party from which discovery of the information is sought, or (C) the court’s own motion, after reasonable notice to, and an opportunity 3 Cite as 2009 Ark. 448 to be heard from, the parties and any person not a party from which discovery of the information is sought. (2) An order governing discovery of electronically stored information may address: (A) whether discovery of information is reasonably likely to be sought in the proceedings; (B) preservation of the information; (C) the form in which each type of the information is to be produced; (D) the time within which the information is to be produced; (E) the permissible scope of discovery of the information; (F) the method for asserting or preserving claims of privilege or of protection of the information as trial-preparation material after production; (G) the method for asserting or preserving confidentiality and the proprietary status of information relating to a party or a person not a party to the proceeding; (H) allocation of the expense of production; and (I) any other issue relating to the discovery of the information. (e) Limitation on sanctions. Absent exceptional circumstances, the court may not impose sanctions on a party under these rules for failure to provide electronically stored information lost as the result of the routine, good-faith operation of an electronic information system. (f) Request for production. (1) In a civil proceeding, a party may serve on any other party a request for production of electronically stored information and for permission to inspect, copy, test or sample the information. (2) A party on which a request to produce electronically stored information has 4 Cite as 2009 Ark. 448 been served shall, in a timely manner, serve a response on the requesting party. The response must state, with respect to each item or category in the request: (A) that inspection, copying, testing, or sampling of the information will be permitted as requested; or (B) any objection to the request and the reasons for the objection. (g) Form of production. Unless the parties otherwise agree or the court otherwise orders: (1) the responding party shall produce the information in a form in which it is ordinarily maintained or in a form that is reasonably useful; (2) if necessary, the responding party shall also produce any specialized software, material, or information not ordinarily available so that the requesting party can access and use the information in its ordinarily maintained form; and (3) a party need not produce the same electronically stored information in more than one form. (h) Limitations on discovery. (1) A party may object to discovery of electronically stored information from sources that the party identifies as not reasonably accessible because of undue burden or expense. In its objection the party shall identify the reason for such undue burden or expense. (2) On motion to compel discovery or for a protective order relating to the discovery of electronically stored information, a party objecting bears the burden of showing that the information is from a source that is not reasonably accessible because of undue burden or expense. (3) The court may order discovery of electronically stored information that is from a source that is not reasonably accessible because of undue burden or expense if the party requesting discovery shows that the likely benefit of the proposed discovery outweighs the likely burden or expense, taking into account the amount in controversy, the resources of the parties, the importance of the issues, and the importance of the requested discovery in resolving the issues. (4) If the court orders discovery of electronically stored information under 5 Cite as 2009 Ark. 448 subdivision (h)(3) it may set conditions for discovery of the information, including allocation of the expense of discovery. (5) The court shall limit the frequency or extent of discovery of electronically stored information, even from a source that is reasonably accessible, if the court determines that: (A) it is possible to obtain the information from some other source that is more convenient, less burdensome, or less expensive; (B) the discovery sought is unreasonably cumulative or duplicative; (C) the party seeking discovery has had ample opportunity by discovery in the proceeding to obtain the information sought; or (D) the likely burden or expense of the proposed discovery outweighs the likely benefit, taking into account the amount in controversy, the resources of the parties, the importance of the issues, and the importance of the requested discovery in resolving the issues. (i) Claim of privilege or protection after production. A claim of privilege or protection after production of electronic data under these supplemental rules shall be governed by Rule of Civil Procedure (26)(b)(5) unless the application of that rule is modified by agreement of the parties or by order of the court. (j) Subpoena for production. (1) A subpoena in a civil proceeding may require that electronically stored information be produced and that the party serving the subpoena or person acting on the party’s request be permitted to inspect, copy, test, or sample the information. (2) Subject to subsections (j)(3) and (j)(4), subdivisions (g), (h), and (i) apply to a person responding to a subpoena under subsection (j)(1) as if that person were a party. (3) A party serving a subpoena requiring production of electronically stored information shall take reasonable steps to avoid imposing undue burden or expense on a person subject to the subpoena. 6 Cite as 2009 Ark. 448 (4) An order of the court requiring compliance with a subpoena issued under this rule must provide protection to a person that is neither a party nor a party’s officer from undue burden or expense resulting from compliance. 7