Chief Justice Barbara J. Rouse recently announced that the Massachusetts Superior Court’s Business Litigation Session (BLS) will extend its pilot project for at least another calendar year. First announced in early 2010, the BLS Pilot Project is designed to reduce discovery costs and streamline the discovery process, especially with respect to the collection, review, and production of electronically stored information.

Initial reports from practitioners and clients who have participated in the pilot program indicate that it encourages cooperation between the parties and can result in a more manageable and streamlined document production and discovery process. As before, parties may voluntarily elect to participate in the pilot project in all cases filed in the BLS.