Federal Courts
Feature
Collected Wisdom on Selecting Leaders and Managing MDLs
by Stephen R. Bough and Elizabeth Burch
Vol. 106 No. 1 (2022) | Necessarily EngagedIn 2020, nearly one out of every two new suits filed in federal civil court was part of a multidistrict litigation (MDL). Initially designed to organize antitrust cases against electrical equipment manufacturers, […]
Feature
Rule 37(e): The New Law of Electronic Spoliation
Vol. 99 No. 3 (2015) | Fixing DiscoveryEffective dec. 1, 2015, federal rule of civil procedure 37(e) will change dramatically the law of spoliation. Prior to the adoption of this rule, the Circuits had split on the […]
Feature
From Rule Text to Reality: Achieving Proportionality in Practice
by Steven S. Gensler and Lee Rosenthal
Vol. 99 No. 3 (2015) | Fixing DiscoveryIn November 2014, a year before the 2015 discovery amendments could become effective, the Duke Center for Judicial Studies started a project to provide guidance for judges and lawyers on […]
Feature
How Federal Judges Contribute to Mass Incarceration and What They Can Do About It
by Jon Deitrich and Lynn S. Adelman
Vol. 99 No. 3 (2015) | Fixing DiscoveryTalk of reforming federal sentencing law is much in the air. Increased public awareness of the fact that the United States is the world capital of mass incarceration has prompted […]
Feature
Judge of All Trades: Further Thoughts on Specialized Courts
Vol. 99 No. 3 (2015) | Fixing DiscoveryThe proverbial visitor from Mars (or perhaps from the habitable exoplanet Kepler-62f) with an interest in judicial systems would have no trouble perceiving that Earthlings follow two distinct philosophies about […]
Feature
New Rules, New Opportunities
Vol. 99 No. 3 (2015) | Fixing DiscoveryIn May of 2010, some 200 judges, lawyers, and academics gathered for two days at the Duke University Law School to evaluate the state of civil litigation in federal court. […]
Briefs
Pilot Project for Discovery Protocols for Employment Cases Alleging Diverse Action
by Emery G. Lee III and Jason A. Cantone
Vol. 100 No. 1 (2016) | 100 Years of JudicatureIn November 2015, the Federal Judicial Center (FJC) reported to the Judicial Conference Advisory Committee on Civil Rules on a pilot project designed to streamline litigation by using pattern discovery […]
Point/Counterpoint
Jurors Asking Questions
by David R. Herndon and N. Randy Smith
Vol. 100 No. 1 (2016) | 100 Years of JudicatureIn some courtrooms, the practice of allowing jurors to pose questions to witnesses is gaining traction. Questioning witnesses allows jurors to clarify information and better understand the evidence and arguments […]
Briefs
A Milestone for Diversity in MDL
Vol. 100 No. 1 (2016) | 100 Years of JudicatureCenter for Judicial Studies events help pave way for first majority-female steering committee MDLs are where the action is, and the PSC is where the litigation decisions are made for […]
Feature
A Statutory Oddity
Vol. 105 No. 3 (2021) | Leaving AfghanistanThe Different and Sometimes Convoluted Ways that Congress Granted Circuit Court Trial Jurisdiction to the 19th-Century Federal District Courts Doing research for a book on the history of the federal […]