William P. Butterfield Award for Excellence in eDiscovery Writing

April 11, 2018 (Washington, DC) – Hausfeld and The Sedona Conference® announced today the William P. Butterfield Award for Excellence in eDiscovery Writing.

The Award will be presented annually to recognize and incentivize innovative legal thinking, independent research, and technical solutions that advance the field of eDiscovery and promote cooperation, collaboration and efficiency in eDiscovery. The winner of the competition will be recognized in a news release announcing the Award, receive a $10,000 cash award from Hausfeld and, at the option of the winner and The Sedona Conference®, have his or her winning paper published in The Sedona Conference Journal®.

The eponymous award honors the memory of the late William P. Butterfield, a founding member of Hausfeld, former chair The Sedona Conference’s Working Group 1 Steering Committee on electronic discovery, and an eDiscovery thought leader. Though a prolific writer, Mr. Butterfield is best known as the Editor-in-Chief of The Sedona Conference® manifesto, The Case for Cooperation, encouraging cooperative, collaborative, and efficient discovery. 

“Bill had an unwavering commitment to cooperation and creative problem-solving as the keys to preventing disruptive eDiscovery disputes, avoiding gamesmanship, reducing litigation costs, fostering professionalism, and, foremost, uncovering the truth through discovery to ensure justice was served,” said Michael Hausfeld, chair of Hausfeld.

“This annual writing competition will ensure Bill’s legacy lives on and his contributions to the law are recognized for generations to come,” said Craig Weinlein, Executive Director of The Sedona Conference®, which worked collaboratively with Hausfeld to design the competition to advance the law and technology of eDiscovery and the principle of cooperation—goals Bill worked tirelessly to advance. 

The competition is open to scholars, legal practitioners and law students, technologists and others working in the field of e-discovery and accepts papers involving innovative technical or legal solutions or proposals, original quantitative or qualitative research relating to e-discovery, or other similar topics that advance the field of e-discovery or promote cooperation.  

The 2018 deadline for submissions is October 1, 2018. The winner will be announced before 2018 year's end. For 2019 and the years following, the submission deadline will be March 1 of each year, with the winner to be announced in May of each year.

For more information about the Award and details about how to enter the writing competition, please visit the websites for The Sedona Conference  and Hausfeld.

NOTE TO EDITORS:
About The Sedona Conference®

The Sedona Conference® (TSC) is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) research and educational institute dedicated to the advanced study of law and policy in the areas of antitrust law, complex litigation, and intellectual property rights. The mission of TSC is to drive the reasoned and just advancement of law and policy by stimulating ongoing dialogue amongst leaders of the bench and bar to achieve consensus on tipping point issues. TSC brings together the brightest minds in a dialogue based, think-tank setting with the goal of creating practical solutions and recommendations of immediate benefit to the bench and bar.

About Hausfeld 

Hausfeld is a leading global law firm with offices in Berlin, Boston, Brussels, Düsseldorf, London, New York, Paris, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Washington, DC. The firm has a broad range of complex litigation expertise, particularly in antitrust/competition, financial services, sports and entertainment, environmental, mass torts, consumer protection, and human rights matters, often with an international dimension. Hausfeld aims to achieve the best possible results for clients through its practical and commercial approach, avoiding litigation where feasible, yet litigating robustly when necessary. Hausfeld’s extensive experience with alternative and innovative fee models offers clients a diverse menu of engagement options and maximum flexibility in terms of managing their cost exposure.

Hausfeld is the only claimants’ firm to be ranked by the Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners as a top tier firm in private enforcement of antitrust/competition law in both the United States and the United Kingdom. For more information about the firm, including recent trial victories and landmark settlements, please visit: www.hausfeld.com.