Various federal rules were amended, all effective December 1, 2020.  Below is a summary of each.  To review the full text and redline versions of these rules as well as the accompany committee notes, please visit: https://www.uscourts.gov/rules-policies/current-rules-practice-procedure.

              Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure 35 and 40 were amended to create length limits for responses to petitions for rehearing.  The previous versions of these rules created limits for the petitions themselves but not the responses to the petitions for rehearing.  The amendment to Rule 40(a)(3) also changes the term “answer” to “response” to be consistent with Rule 35.

              Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure 2002, 2004, 8012, 8013, 8015, and 8021 were amended.  The amendment to Rule 2002 (1) requires giving notice of the entry of an order confirming a chapter 13 plan; (2) limits the need to provide notice to creditors that do not file timely proofs of claim in chapter 12 and chapter 13 cases; and (3) adds a cross-reference in response to the relocation of the provision specifying the deadline for objecting to confirmation of a chapter 13 plan.  Rule 2004 provides for the examination of debtors and other entities regarding a broad range of issues relevant to a bankruptcy case.  Rule 2004(c) authorizes the attendance of a witness and production of documents to be compelled by means of a subpoena.  The amendment to this subsection adds explicit authorization to compel production of electronically stored information.  The amendment further provides that a subpoena for a Rule 2004 examination is properly issued from the court where the bankruptcy case is pending by an attorney authorized to practice in that court, even if the examination is to occur in another district.  Rule 8012 requires a nongovernmental corporate party to a bankruptcy appeal in the district court or bankruptcy appellate panel to file a corporate disclosure statement and is modeled after Appellate Rule 26.1.  The amendment to Rule 8012 tracks the amendment to Appellate Rule 26.1 adopted on April 25, 2019 – Rule 8012(a) was amended to add a disclosure requirement for nongovernmental corporate intervenors; Rule 8012(b) was added to require disclosure of debtors’ names and requires disclosures by nongovernmental corporate debtors.  On April 25, 2019, the Supreme Court adopted an amendment to Appellate Rule 25(d) that eliminated the requirement of proof of service for documents served through the court’s electronic filing system.  Corresponding amendments to Appellate Rules 5, 21, 26, 32, and 39 reflected this change by either eliminating or qualifying references to “proof of service” as necessary.  Bankruptcy Rules 8013(a)(1), 8015(g), and 8021(d) were amended to track the amended language of their Appellate Rules counterparts.

              Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 30(b)(6), the rule addressing deposition notices or subpoenas directed to an organization, was amended to respond to problems that have emerged in some cases regarding the overlong or ambiguously worded lists of matters for examination and inadequately prepared witnesses.  The amendment to Rule 30(b)(6) directs the serving party and the named organization to confer before or promptly after the notice or subpoena is served about the matters for examination.  The amendment also requires the subpoena to notify a nonparty organization of its duty to confer and to designate each person who will testify.

              Finally, Federal Rule of Evidence 404(b) was amended.  This rule governs the admissibility of evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts.  The amendment to Evidence Rule 404(b) requires the prosecutor to describe in the notice “the permitted purpose for which the prosecutor intends to offer the evidence and the reasoning that supports the purpose.”  The amendment deleted the requirement that the defendant request notice and instead requires the prosecution to provide notice as a matter of routine, if applicable.  The amendment restyled the phrase “crimes, wrongs, or other acts” to its original form, “other crimes, wrongs, or acts,” to clarify this Rule applies to crimes, wrongs, or acts other than those charged.

              In addition to the above federal rules, certain Nevada Rules have recently been amended.  Below is a summary of each, including the respective effective dates.  For the full description and text of each rule, please visit: https://nvcourts.gov/Supreme/Rules/Rule_Amendments_for_all_Nevada_Courts/.

              Canon 6 of the NALA Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility requires, among other things, competency through education and training.  Part of such education and training is staying current on rule changes like the ones outlined above.  Each SNAP member agrees to be bound by the NALA Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility as part of the membership process.  Not only will commitment to education prove helpful in your job performance, but it also reflects well on you to your employer and professional organizations.