Parties' discovery depositions will soon be admissible in "rare, but compelling," circumstances

Remember Berry v. American Standard? Here's how NIU Professor Emeritus Jeffrey A. Parness described the sad Berry facts in an IBJ column from September 2008 (his quotes are from the case): Berry's claim failed, Parness wrote, because he "died before his evidence deposition could be taken, his discovery deposition was inadmissible, and there was insufficient other evidence on liability even though defendants seemingly 'were in control of the discovery deposition' and had taxed the claimant, a terminally ill man, in ways that made 'it impossible for him to give an evidence deposition.'" Well, the Illinois Supreme Court just amended Rule 212, effective January 1, to give the trial court discretion to admit the discovery deposition of the next plaintiff in Berry's shoes. Quoting the Committee Comments: "It appears that there may be rare, but compelling, circumstances under which a party's discovery deposition should be permitted to be used. In the Committee's view, Berry presents such circumstances."