Rule 37(E) And Spoliation Sanctions Under The Amended Rules

E-Discovery counsel Samantha V. Ettari's article "Rule 37(e) and Spoliation Sanctions Under the Amended Rules," appeared in the February 1, 2016, issue of the New York Law Journal. In December 2015, an expanded Rule 37(e) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure went into effect, which instructs on remedies and sanctions available for spoliation of electronically stored information (ESI). The remedies and sanctions potentially available for negligent and intentional spoliation are clearer, and intended to result in more uniform application. In this article, Ms. Ettari examines the first ruling issued under revised Rule 37(e) - the Jan. 12, 2016, decision issued in the Southern District of New York in CAT3 v. Black Lineage, which analyzed the appropriate remedies available under the revised rule for the intentional spoliation of email content, and awarded sanctions.