Federal Civil Rulemaking, Discovery Reform, and the Promise of Pilot Projects

April 4, 2018

For decades, both plaintiffs’ and defense attorneys have called for reforms to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure to address a “discovery crisis” that they define in diametrically opposing terms. Plaintiffs’ attorneys seek a rule that allows for broader discovery, while defense attorneys argue that discovery is already too broad. In the middle of this argument is the committee tasked with revising these rules, which has thus far struggled to find a solution to satisfy all parties.

In ACS’s latest Issue Brief, Professor Coleman of the Seattle University School of Law examines the failed history of attempted discovery reform and suggests we may find hope for solutions in two pilot projects designed to implement broad mandatory initial discovery and reduce litigation costs and delays. She argues that these pilot projects, including those currently underway in Arizona and Illinois, could provide the empirical data necessary to justify and achieve broad consensus on future rule changes.    

Read the full Issue Brief here: Federal Civil Rulemaking, Discovery Reform, and the Promise of Pilot Projects