The exponential growth of electronic information for business and personal use presents many challenges for litigators. Understanding how information is created, stored, moved, changed and archived has resulted in the need for skilled professionals to assist legal counsel with data management related to e-discovery.
While technology provides new ways to create, store, transmit and manage data, it also adds a layer of complexity impacting how one finds the required information to support the legal matter. In the context of defensible preservation, collection methodologies and culling strategies, one needs to balance the risk of not being able to review 100 per cent of the data, given its size, with the cost of review and tight timelines.
So what can law firms and corporate legal departments do when faced with terabytes of potentially relevant info? “You need to be targeted about what you want and how you get it,” says Gerald Ranking, a senior partner at Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP. “Effective counsel should implement a staged process for the production of documents, reserving the right to get more information if you need it.”
Understanding the client’s data-management processes, knowing who the custodians are, and understanding the business issues will help narrow the scope and better manage the e-discovery costs. “Client expenses need to be top-of-mind,” says Kelly Inglese, Director of Litigation Support at Faskens. “Having a conversation early on with a client about the potential costs of the e-discovery phase will ensure you get it right. Including those costs in the proposed budget is a good idea as well.”
Costs associated with e-discovery can increase quickly if you don’t have a sound plan for managing electronic evidence. Many law firms and companies also lack the subject matter expertise and technology infrastructure to fully support e-discovery activities. This is where an e-discovery and managed service provider can help.
Vendors can bring a variety of review platforms, robust technology infrastructure, scalable processing capabilities for electronic data, scalable storage capacity to manage any size project, 24/7 support, experienced project managers to guide you through the process, and immediate access to subject matter experts. The flexibility of what is now being offered by e-discovery specialists allows for scalability and effective cost management.
Law firms or law departments that don’t have in-house resources can work with vendors to get assistance with e-discovery when needed. Rather than paying technology and licensing fees directly and carrying the cost of dedicated staff that may not be required all the time, firms can draw upon the technology infrastructure and personnel of e-discovery support firms — either through a managed service outsourcing agreement or on a case-by-case basis.
These arrangements provide for as much or as little autonomy as required to manage your own environment. If you have dedicated staff, you can augment them with the staff from a third party as required. This provides the flexibility and cost savings without long-term commitments or investments, while at the same time providing stability to litigation support offerings by securing subject matter experts with a deep bench of experienced staff.
Vendors can also help by bringing their experience to bear on e-discovery strategy. “[Vendors] bring expertise from working on countless other cases. You can’t underestimate the benefit of this,” says Ranking.
In addition, vendors can assist with data review strategies, can provide a collaborative environment by hosting data externally and providing easy access to lawyers, clients and other approved stakeholders. “A centralized repository of electronic evidence accessible to all helps to create a collaborative team environment that can be very efficient. … It’s a more professional and streamlined approach,” explains Inglese. “Clients are appreciative of the benefits.”
Working with a provider of e-discovery and litigation support can yield significant benefits: lower operating costs, decreased e-discovery costs to clients, and increased confidence that information is being collected and managed appropriately. This confidence can provide firms with the ability to focus less on the mechanics of data collection and more on what they do best — understanding the evidence and building the case for their clients.
All told, e-discovery and evidence management is fast becoming a critical issue for corporations and law firms working across a wide range of practice areas. “If you don’t have confidence in your document management, you’re done,” says Ranking.
Law firms should recognize this and act now to determine how they will manage their e-discovery activities in a transparent, defensible and cost-effective way before their ability to manage electronic evidence becomes compromised.
William Platt is a partner in the forensics, eDiscovery and litigation support group at PwC LLP.
While technology provides new ways to create, store, transmit and manage data, it also adds a layer of complexity impacting how one finds the required information to support the legal matter. In the context of defensible preservation, collection methodologies and culling strategies, one needs to balance the risk of not being able to review 100 per cent of the data, given its size, with the cost of review and tight timelines.
So what can law firms and corporate legal departments do when faced with terabytes of potentially relevant info? “You need to be targeted about what you want and how you get it,” says Gerald Ranking, a senior partner at Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP. “Effective counsel should implement a staged process for the production of documents, reserving the right to get more information if you need it.”
Understanding the client’s data-management processes, knowing who the custodians are, and understanding the business issues will help narrow the scope and better manage the e-discovery costs. “Client expenses need to be top-of-mind,” says Kelly Inglese, Director of Litigation Support at Faskens. “Having a conversation early on with a client about the potential costs of the e-discovery phase will ensure you get it right. Including those costs in the proposed budget is a good idea as well.”
Costs associated with e-discovery can increase quickly if you don’t have a sound plan for managing electronic evidence. Many law firms and companies also lack the subject matter expertise and technology infrastructure to fully support e-discovery activities. This is where an e-discovery and managed service provider can help.
Vendors can bring a variety of review platforms, robust technology infrastructure, scalable processing capabilities for electronic data, scalable storage capacity to manage any size project, 24/7 support, experienced project managers to guide you through the process, and immediate access to subject matter experts. The flexibility of what is now being offered by e-discovery specialists allows for scalability and effective cost management.
Law firms or law departments that don’t have in-house resources can work with vendors to get assistance with e-discovery when needed. Rather than paying technology and licensing fees directly and carrying the cost of dedicated staff that may not be required all the time, firms can draw upon the technology infrastructure and personnel of e-discovery support firms — either through a managed service outsourcing agreement or on a case-by-case basis.
These arrangements provide for as much or as little autonomy as required to manage your own environment. If you have dedicated staff, you can augment them with the staff from a third party as required. This provides the flexibility and cost savings without long-term commitments or investments, while at the same time providing stability to litigation support offerings by securing subject matter experts with a deep bench of experienced staff.
Vendors can also help by bringing their experience to bear on e-discovery strategy. “[Vendors] bring expertise from working on countless other cases. You can’t underestimate the benefit of this,” says Ranking.
In addition, vendors can assist with data review strategies, can provide a collaborative environment by hosting data externally and providing easy access to lawyers, clients and other approved stakeholders. “A centralized repository of electronic evidence accessible to all helps to create a collaborative team environment that can be very efficient. … It’s a more professional and streamlined approach,” explains Inglese. “Clients are appreciative of the benefits.”
Working with a provider of e-discovery and litigation support can yield significant benefits: lower operating costs, decreased e-discovery costs to clients, and increased confidence that information is being collected and managed appropriately. This confidence can provide firms with the ability to focus less on the mechanics of data collection and more on what they do best — understanding the evidence and building the case for their clients.
All told, e-discovery and evidence management is fast becoming a critical issue for corporations and law firms working across a wide range of practice areas. “If you don’t have confidence in your document management, you’re done,” says Ranking.
Law firms should recognize this and act now to determine how they will manage their e-discovery activities in a transparent, defensible and cost-effective way before their ability to manage electronic evidence becomes compromised.
William Platt is a partner in the forensics, eDiscovery and litigation support group at PwC LLP.
Lawyer(s)
Gerald L.R. Ranking
William J. Platt