Discovery Resources

by Dennis Kiker, Esq., Director, Professional Services, Fios, Inc.

Cost containment continued to be the most recurrent theme on day two of the Georgetown Advanced E-Discovery Institute.  And by a pretty wide margin (with no disrespect to any of the other excellent speakers), Ralph Losey and Jason Baron’s presentation on advanced search had to be the most entertaining of the day.  The message was simple: the volume of data created and stored on computers continues to increase exponentially, and traditional methods of identifying, collecting and reviewing that data are becoming impractical.  Indeed, they are impractical already in many cases.

As a result of the work being done by TREC Legal Track, the continue…

It’s everywhere, according to this recent article in the Austin 10 written by Tony R. Bertolino, managing partner at Bertolino LLP: Electronic discovery is now playing a critical role in more than 75% of divorce cases.

“….What Sarah Brown found on her husband’s computer hard drive was enough to make her call a divorce lawyer the next morning, and begin an emotional trial that tested the boundaries of the always-evolving legal world of electronic discovery.”  Continue reading….

By Fernando M. Pinguelo and Andrew K. Taylor

Earlier we reported that a New Jersey state trial court found that a former employee waived the attorney-client privilege when she decided to use company time, equipment, and resources to communicate with her lawyer. Recently, an appellate court reversed that ruling and framed the issue as “whether workplace regulations converted an employee’s emails with her attorney ” sent through the employee’s personal, password-protected, web-based email account, but via her employer’s computer “into the employer’s property.”

Plaintiff had argued that the company failed to demonstrate that it had ever adopted or distributed the policy in question, that she was unaware that the policy applied to continue…

This article, written by Nuix CEO Eddie Sheehy, discusses his ideas about how to improve eDiscovery solutions the most efficient, cost-effect ways.

In these strained economic times, there is intense pressure on the eDiscovery process to improve operational performance, while processing increasingly large amounts of data faster, with less labor and lower costs and overhead, while also maintaining top-notch accuracy. Looking forward, there are a variety of logical improvements to eDiscovery technologies that need to be achieved to address market demands in the most effective, cost-efficient way.

1. eDiscovery technologies must improve processing speed to allow users to provide “answers” back to stakeholders rapidly, providing them an immediate strategic overview of their continue…

Tue. 9/29 - Interest in applying project management concepts to e-discovery is on the rise.  This webcast will explore important impacts the discipline of project management can have on the efficiency, cost and outcome predictability of e-discovery projects.  The speaker will discuss the value and implications of project management as it relates to (1) expected outcomes, (2) growing the discipline in a law firm environment and (3) building project management expertise in the e-discovery context.

You will want to attend if you are

If you know hard drives, tape back-up systems and electronic data exchange protocols from A to Z, you won’t necessarily make a good electronic data discovery project manager (PM). So says the latest article from ALSP UPDATE. You may consider yourself an expert, but what does it really take to play the project management role in electronic discovery world? Continue reading….

While dodging bullets on settlement negotiations, privileged information on potential recoveries and nondisclosed insurance coverages, the Corporate Bar will be dealing with disclosures on timing of legal recoveries, possibly including “nonprivileged quantitative information” about a potential loss.

The Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) prioritized working with the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) to avoid disclosing settlement and litigation budgets as part of protecting work product and legal strategy.  The concern was that disclosure would include litigation budgets, including the total potential cost of ediscovery and trial costs, and potential settlement amounts and likelihood of settlement.

While the outcome is not as draconian as it could have been, there are significant reporting obligations continue…

In today’s ABA Journal we find the following troubling developments:

“The former managing counsel for Toyota Motor Sales USA has filed a lawsuit against his former employer alleging the automaker destroyed evidence in hundreds of rollover suits, leading to his mental breakdown and firing.

The story says Biller’s suit has “electrified the plaintiffs bar, where some lawyers involved in vehicle cases have long voiced suspicions about foreign automakers withholding evidence.”  Continue reading….

On June 29, 2009, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed California’s Electronic Discovery Act into law.  Because the Act contains an urgency provision, it is effective as of June 29, 2009.

Here’s the Electronic Discovery Act in its entirety.

…. Tip of the hat to Michael J. Eng at the Electronic Discovery Navigator

Steamy messages from the South Carolina governor to his lover in Argentina didn’t stay private. Take a lesson, experts say: Employers often monitor e-mail, and text messages can be trouble too. Continue