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LCJ – Making a Real
Difference For You and
Your Clients
By Scott Kreamer, Chair of the Advisory Committee
Scott Kreamer
In today’s environment, how many times have we been asked by our firms what value do the organizations we belong to provide? The easy answers for the FDCC include business development and skills development with programs like Trial Masters and Evolve. One little known but
extraordinary value Federation membership provides is the Federation’s affiliation with and support of the Lawyers For Civil Justice.
For those of you who are not familiar with the LCJ, it is the only defense organization advocating for reforms to civil litigation rules to lower litigation costs and gain more predictability. Not only is LCJ fighting for our clients, but they are winning in areas that matter. When I am filling out RFP’s, one of the added values I always mention is my involvement with LCJ and the benefits we are achieving for our clients. Here are just a few of LCJ’s successes.
Expert Evidence
The proposed Rule 702 amendment promoted by
LCJ, aimed at clarifying the standards for admission
of expert testimony, is on the verge of adoption. The amendment was unanimously approved by the rules standing committee and the judicial conference in 2022 and by the Supreme Court, which then submitted it to Congress. The amendment should take effect on December 1, 2023. LCJ’s “Don’t Say Daubert” media campaign, which highlighted the need for Rule 702 reform, is educating courts and lawyers about how
the amendment will affect practice and is serving as a resource for state rule reform.
Multidistrict Litigation
After several years of prodding by LCJ, the Civil Rules Advisory Committee’s MDL Subcommittee last year turned its focus to considering an FRCP amendment. The Subcommittee produced a “sketch” Rule 16.1 that would govern the early organization of MDLs. LCJ held multiple member meetings with the Subcommittee
on the “sketch” rule and shared ideas for how it could be improved. The sketch is expected to be refined by the MDL Subcommittee this spring. Meanwhile, LCJ’s #Rules4MDLs media campaign continued to educate followers about the need for fair and transparent rules in MDL proceedings, especially to address the mass filing of unvetted claims in mass-tort cases.
Discovery
LCJ’s advocacy for a FRCP amendment clarifying
that “document-by-document” privilege logs are not necessary in every instance is making substantial progress. After considerable work, the Civil Rules Advisory Committee’s Discovery Subcommittee finalized a proposal in October to amend Rules 16 and 26 to encourage courts and parties to consider the different ways in which parties can meet their logging obligations. LCJ expects that proposal to be published for public comment in 2023.
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