Over the past few years, the federal judiciary has moved to help parties better manage electronic evidence and reign in their e-discovery costs. And for some, these changes are bearing fruit. Yet it may be only the tip of the iceberg.

The judiciary recently continued its effort to streamline processes in civil litigation by announcing changes to Federal Rules of Evidence (FRE) Rule 902. At Legalweek West's “Authentication of Evidence 2.0” session, speakers put these updates in perspective, explaining how and why they will help litigators save money and time when presenting evidence in court.

Lea Malani Bays, of counsel at Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd, explained that FRE Rule 902 defines different types of “self-authenticating evidence”—essentially evidence that requires no extrinsic supporting validation to prove its authenticity. Bays noted that rule 902 currently allows for 12 types of self-authenticating evidence, such as newspapers, periodicals, or certified copies of public record.