December 2015 Amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure

The most recent round of amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure took effect on December 1, 2015. Heralded by some as indicative of a sea of change in federal practice, and dismissed by others as much ado about nothing, the import of the 2015 amendments is just beginning to manifest itself in real-world case applications. Chief Justice Roberts noted in his 2015 year-end report on the federal court system that “[t]he amendments may not look like a big deal at first glance, but they are.”  Whether his assessment is confirmed in practice, however, remains to be seen.  

In this program, attorneys Jennifer H. Rearden and Gabriel Herrmann of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP summarize the key components of the 2015 rule amendments and assess the earliest indications regarding their impact on the conduct of litigation in the federal courts.  

Learning Objectives: 

I.     Understand the import of Rule 1’s “cooperation” amendment

II.    Evaluate the scope of 2015’s proportionality amendments and the standards governing proportionality under the amended rules

III.   Summarize the recent case-management amendments and consider their practical implications

IV.   Review amended Rule 37’s new provisions governing preservation of electronically stored information

V.    Identify any early trends in the implementation of the 2015 amendments