This is the third in a series of articles about the practical implications of the 2015 amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. They went into effect on Dec. 1, 2015.

From an e-discovery perspective, the most impactful amendments are to Rule 1 (cooperation), 26 (proportionality and scope of discovery), 34 (objections), and 37 (sanctions). The first article in this series—titled “A New Era of Cooperation for E-Discovery Rules?”—was published on Oct. 12 and concerned the changes to Rule 1. The second article in this series—titled “Proportionality and the Scope of Discovery in the 2015 Amendments”—was published on Nov. 6 and concerned the changes to Rule 26. This article will focus on the changes to Rule 37(e) regarding spoliation.

There is a maxim of the Internet called “Godwin's Law,” which stands for the proposition that the longer an online discussion continues, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler increases to a certainty. In the context of e-discovery, a corollary to Godwin's Law exists—let's call it Zubulake's law—in which any discussion about e-discovery, the longer it goes, will turn to sanctions.