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Officer Reports FDCC UPDATES
Submit Comments on the Proposed
Amendments to the Federal Rules
by Dan Steen
Six new proposals
to amend the
Federal Rules of
Civil Procedure,
Evidence, and
Criminal Procedure
Dan Steen
are available for
public comment.
It is important that you consider
commenting on these proposed
rule amendments, as they could
impact you and your clients for
years to come.
You can help shape these rule
proposals by participating in the
public comment process, which is
open now until mid-February. You
have three ways to participate in
the process: (1) write a comment
letter; (2) speak at one or more of
the scheduled public hearings;
and/or (3) share your experience
or expertise about these proposals
with the FDCC or Lawyers for Civil
Justice (LCJ).
Written comment letters on one
or more of the six proposals may be
submitted by February 16, 2026
(the sooner, the better). Instructions
on how you can submit a letter with
the appropriate advisory committee
are available on the US Courts
website, https://www.uscourts.
gov/forms-rules/proposed-
amendments-published-public-
comment. You can also find more
•
•
•
information on how to participate
at LCJ’s website, www.lfcj.com.
Virtual public hearings on the
proposals will be held on the
following dates:
Advisory Committee on Civil
Rules: January 13 and January
27, 2026
Advisory Committee on
Evidence Rules: January 15 and
January 29, 2026
Advisory Committee on
Criminal Rules: January 22 and
February 5, 2026
You can reserve your spot to speak
by contacting the Secretary of the
Committee on Rules of Practice and
Procedure at least 30 days before
the hearing, by sending an e-mail
to RulesCommittee_Secretary@
ao.uscourts.gov. The public
comment process is critical. The
proposals have been approved
only for public comment, and
the advisory committees will
consider feedback from the bar
when deciding whether to modify,
abandon, or proceed with each
proposal.
Please plan to offer your
perspectives on one or more of the
proposed rule changes:
Methods of service
of subpoenas
A proposed amendment to FRCP
45(b)(1) would clarify what
“delivering” a subpoena means
by providing more methods of
service, including by U.S. mail or
commercial carrier and, when
good cause is shown, additional
methods “reasonably calculated to
give notice.” The proposal would
also establish 14-day notice and
remove the requirement to tender
witness fees at the time of service.
The LCJ has filed a comment on this
proposal, which is available on the
LCJ website, www.lfcj.com.
Remote Testimony
The proposal would clarify that a
court’s subpoena power extends
nationwide by amending Rule 45 to
define the “place of attendance for
remote testimony” as “the location
where the person is commanded
to appear in person” rather than
the court where the trial or hearing
is conducted. This amendment
package would also amend FRCP
26 to require notice of whether
each witness is expected to testify in
person or remotely.
Machine-Generated Evidence
A proposed new rule of evidence,
FRE 707, addresses the admissibility
of evidence created or significantly
modified by computer systems,
particularly those involving artificial
intelligence. The purpose of this
new rule is to address concerns
about the reliability of such
evidence when introduced without
an expert witness, for example as a
business record. The proposed rule
would require that such evidence
meets the reliability standards of
FRE 702(a)–(d).
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