Women in eDiscovery Phoenix Chapter Hosts Judges Roundtable
Photo: Front Row: Kate Mortensen (Chief Legal Officer, Xact Data Discovery), Jamie Sheppard, (Client Success Manager, IPRO Tech), Tiffany Trejo (eDiscovery Specialist, Ricoh eDiscovery), Judge Pamela Gates (Maricopa County Superior Court, Presiding Judge), Judge Danielle Viola (Maricopa County Superior Court, Victoria Stevens (Sr. Paralegal, Wilenchik & Bartness, P.C.); Second Row: Judge Samuel Thumma (Arizona Court of Appeals), Lisa Waldin (Project Manager, Ryley Carlock), Judge Dominic Lanza (US District Court for the District of Arizona)
On October 17th, the Phoenix Chapter of Women in eDiscovery hosted a Judges roundtable event at the downtown offices of Snell & Wilmer. Four judges came to speak to over fifty attendees about eDiscovery trends and best practices they are seeing from the bench. Lunch was sponsored by IPRO.
WiE was launched in 2007 as a non-profit organization focused on providing women with legal technology education, networking and leadership opportunities. It’s now 28 chapters strong and growing, with each hosting monthly or quarterly meetings comprised of professionals within the legal industry including law firm and corporate legal attorneys, litigation support professionals, paralegals, legal IT staff, consultants, and vendors.
Below are highlights of what each speaker shared during the roundtable.
Hon. Dominic W. Lanza, US District Judge for the District of Arizona
eDiscovery Tip: “I don’t always hold Rule 16 meetings but begin with a Rule 26f conference right away. It may be your only shot to raise issues or concerns, so it’s vital that you find a way to be concise in disputes and crisply discuss scope with a focus on specifics and costs during the meet and confer.”
Before his appointment to the bench in 2018, Judge Lanza spent 10 years at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Phoenix, where his responsibilities included serving as the chief of the financial crimes and public integrity section and, later, as the office’s chief assistant. Before joining the U.S. Attorney’s Office, he worked for five years at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher in Los Angeles, specializing in appellate litigation, and clerked for Judge Pamela A. Rymer of the Ninth Circuit.
Hon. Pamela S. Gates, Maricopa County Superior Court Presiding Judge
eDiscovery Tip: “I suggest a focus on cooperation by all parties through the 4 P’s of eDiscovery: Preservation, Production, Protection, and Proportionality. For example, if something can’t be produced, give reasons. The worst thing that could happen is to claim you’ve produced everything and have opposing counsel bring up something you’ve missed.”
Judge Gates was appointed by Governor Jan Brewer in September 2009 to serve on the Maricopa County Superior Court. She currently serves as the Presiding Civil Judge. Prior to this rotation, she served as the Associate Criminal Presiding Judge and the Associate Presiding Judge for Family Court (Downtown). Judge Gates served on numerous state-wide committees and received the 2018 Maricopa County Bar Association Judicial Officer of the Year Award and the Penny Gaines Collegiality Award. Prior to becoming a judge, she worked as a partner at Bryan Cave LLP.
Hon. Danielle J. Viola, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge
eDiscovery Tip: “Unless judges understand all of the details, they can’t rule. This is why it’s important to provide specific information, especially during proportionality complaints, and make experts like I.T. personnel readily available to answer questions.”
Judge Viola was appointed to the Maricopa County Superior Court in 2011. She currently enjoys a civil assignment and is chair of the Jury Advisory Committee for Maricopa County Superior Court, as well as serving on the Advisory Committee on the Rules of Evidence and the Court Interpreter Program Advisory Committee. From 2014 through 2019, Judge Viola presided over a criminal calendar where she also served as the Administrative Judge for the Post-Conviction Relief Unit and as the Associate Presiding Judge for the Criminal Department. Prior to joining the bench, Danielle she was a partner at Snell & Wilmer.
Hon. Samuel A. Thumma, Arizona Court of Appeals Judge
eDiscovery Tip: “Judges are strangers to the individual cases, so you need to be prepared to educate and explain. Anytime you have an ESI issue come up, it’s a learning opportunity for everyone. This is why it’s important to have eDiscovery experts who are able to speak to both the technology and legal concerns in clear language.”
Judge Thumma has served on the Arizona Court of Appeals, Division One, since 2012, serving as Chief Judge for two years ending June 30, 2019, and Vice Chief Judge for two years ending June 30, 2017. Before being appointed to the Court of Appeals, Judge Thumma served as a Judge on the Arizona Superior Court, Maricopa County, for nearly five years, presiding over criminal and juvenile matters (including nearly 250 trials) and serving as an elected member of the Judicial Executive Committee. Nationally, Judge Thumma is a Uniform Law Commissioner, where he chairs the Study Committee on Jury Selection and Service; is a member of the Committee to Monitor Developments in Civil Litigation and Dispute Resolution and chaired the Drafting Committee for the Uniform Employee and Student Online Protection and Privacy Act (2016). He is a member of the American Bar Foundation. By appointment of the National Center for State Courts, he serves on the Joint Technology Committee, a cooperative effort of the NCSC, the Conference of State Court Administrators and the National Association for Court Management. Judge Thumma is a frequent lecturer and author, having presented at more than 340 seminars and published 12 law review, and 50 other law-related, articles. Before joining the bench, Judge Thumma was a partner at Perkins Coie Brown & Bain, P.A., in Phoenix, and an associate at Arnold & Porter in Washington, D.C.
