Section Newsletters

Articles From George Bellas

AI in Discovery? It’s Called TAR By George Bellas Civil Practice and Procedure, March 2024 Technology assisted review is a form of artificial intelligence in which the artificial intelligence machine learning assists in the review process by automatically reviewing, sorting, and classifying large volumes of documents based on whether the documents are likely responsive to discovery requests.
Personal Jurisdiction Remains a Fact-Intensive Inquiry By George Bellas & Kasey Hughes Civil Practice and Procedure, July 2023 The U.S. Supreme Court has created another level of uncertainty with a ruling that changes the landscape for establishing personal jurisdiction in Mallory v. Norfolk Southern R. Co.
The Rise and Fall of the Robot Lawyer: The Beginning of AI Regulation in Legal Practice By George Bellas & Caroline Mazurek Cozzi Civil Practice and Procedure, February 2023 Only time will tell how AI will affect the legal profession, but it is evident that significant changes are underway.
The Mechanics of Preserving and Producing Text Messages By George Bellas & Kasey Hughes Civil Practice and Procedure, January 2023 Text messaging has led to some new issues on the common discovery requests.
ESI: A Primer By George Bellas & Joseph Dybisz Commercial Banking, Collections, and Bankruptcy, July 2022 Because exorbitant litigation costs resulting from complex e-discovery could materially impact a client’s ability to prove a given claim or defense, knowing how to identify, preserve, and negotiate with opposing counsel to obtain relevant electronically stored information presents critical leverage points during e-discovery.
ESI: A Primer By George Bellas & Joseph Dybisz Civil Practice and Procedure, May 2022 Because exorbitant litigation costs resulting from complex e-discovery could materially impact a client’s ability to prove a given claim or defense, knowing how to identify, preserve, and negotiate with opposing counsel to obtain relevant electronically stored information presents critical leverage points during e-discovery.
Lawyer Survival Requires Embracing Technology By George Bellas Elder Law, August 2021 Technology has allowed lawyers to adhere to the requirements of social distancing during COVID, but has also presented the profession with new challenges.
Lawyer Survival Requires Embracing Technology By George Bellas Civil Practice and Procedure, July 2021 Technology has allowed lawyers to adhere to the requirements of social distancing during COVID, but has also presented the profession with new challenges.
Why and How to Request Native File Formats in Requests for ESI Production By George Bellas & Leslie Nelson Civil Practice and Procedure, February 2021 As more of daily life continues to shift online—now accelerated due to the pandemic—the importance of electronically stored information will undoubtedly continue to increase across all litigation.
Text Messages and E-mails Sent From a Public Officials’ Personal Account Qualify as Public Records Under FOIA By Misty Cygan & George Bellas Civil Practice and Procedure, September 2020 The appellate court recently affirmed the lower court's order, which found that Chicago's Office of the Mayor and tDepartment of Public Health had failed to perform a reasonable search as required by FOIA because they failed to make inquiries into the personal text messages and e-mails of public officials.
Blockchain as Evidence By George Bellas Civil Practice and Procedure, November 2019 The increased use of blockchain technology will require lawyers to understand the concept in order to utilize it at trial.
The Basics of Preparing for E-Discovery By George Bellas & Jillian Tattersall Civil Practice and Procedure, September 2019 As discovery increasingly focuses on electronically stored information, it is important to have a working knowledge of the many issues associated with e-discovery.
‘I didn’t mean it!’: Changing deposition testimony with errata sheets By George Bellas & Svetlana Meltser Civil Practice and Procedure, June 2019 Errata sheets allow a witness to make changes to transcripts prior to submitting it as part of discovery, but to what extent can they be used to correct or corrupt testimony?
Lost text messages lead to sanctions By George Bellas Civil Practice and Procedure, March 2019 Schmalz v. Village of North Riverside, et al. highlights the importance of taking measures to preserve data from mobile devices, as well as the risks associated with failing to take such measures.
What is the valuation standard for valuation of a minority interest in an Illinois LLC? By George Bellas & Jillian Tattersall Agricultural Law, January 2019 When a minority interest holder leaves an Illinois limited liability company, determining the value of that former member’s share presents counsel and courts with questions of methodology.
Self-authentication of digital records: New Illinois Rule of Evidence 902(13) By George Bellas Civil Practice and Procedure, December 2018 Effective December 1, 2017, Rule 902 of the Federal Rules of Evidence was amended to add two provisions that authorize self-authentication of electronic evidence by certification.
What is the valuation standard for valuation of a minority interest in an Illinois LLC? By George Bellas & Jillian Tattersall Trusts and Estates, December 2018 When a minority interest holder leaves an Illinois limited liability company, determining the value of that former member’s share presents counsel and courts with questions of methodology.
What is the valuation standard for valuation of a minority interest in an Illinois LLC? By George Bellas & Jillian Tattersall Civil Practice and Procedure, October 2018 When a minority interest holder leaves an Illinois limited liability company, determining the value of that former member’s share presents counsel and courts with questions of methodology.
Self-authentication of electronic evidence By George Bellas Civil Practice and Procedure, September 2018 As technology advances, practitioners must keep up with changes to the Federal Rules of Evidence.

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