The universe for litigation professionals is in a constant state of change.  We have all experienced the shift over the past few years from paper documents to electronic content in various forms, with Microsoft Office arguably the most widely used application for generating electronically stored information.  MS Office applications are notorious for creating copious amounts of metadata by default, which raises major concerns for litigation support professionals as well as litigators.  As a result, this led to a wave of data conversion to TIFF for all electronically stored information in support of litigation.

With the economic crisis causing widespread budget cuts in the legal industry, many continue…

Here’s the Electronic Discovery Act in its entirety.

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

Federal Rule of Evidence 502 (“Rule 502”) was signed into law in September 2008 .  According to the Advisory Committee notes to Rule 502, the Rule is designed to provide a predictable consequence for the unintentional disclosure of information protected by the attorney-client privilege and attorney work-product doctrines, and to reduce the costs associated with the discovery phase of litigation .  Rule 502, related case law and recent developments in tools used for electronic document management all point to several cost effective and prudent steps that may help avoid waiver.  To be successful in the discovery phase a continue…

Recent economic circumstances have forced many companies to make difficult decisions about personnel levels – reductions in force are part of almost every organization’s reality these days.  In law firms alone, it is estimated there have been upwards of 10,000 lay-offs nationwide this year.  It’s neither feasible nor practical to preserve the data of every departing employee in the event it might be needed for litigation or regulatory purposes.  However, if your IT department is not clued into what to do about departing employees and their data, then nothing will be preserved … an even less desirable outcome.  If you haven’t already, you may continue…

In a large, quick, or complex project many hands are involved.  Quite often groups develop into silos and information to other groups working on a separate part of the e-discovery review is lost.  Obviously it is important that the service provider communicate with the client.  However it is equally important that the client communicates internally. It is estimated that 80% of a project is communication. A trained and seasoned project manager will know they need to develop a communication plan which details who is involved in the communication( Point of Contacts/decision makers), type of communication, and how often. 

Make sure the POCs are continue…

Communication. (kə-ˌmyü-nə-ˈkā-shən) (noun): a process by which information is exchanged between individuals through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior. A technique for expressing ideas effectively (as in speech).

In January 1986, the space shuttle Challenger disaster occurred when o-rings failed during launch in unusually cold weather.  In reading about this national tragedy it was clear that communication had been a myriad of straightforward warnings, twisted interpretation, pressured statements and non-communication.  For most project managers the consequences of communication failure will not be so dire.  But, it does illustrate how vital communication is to project success.  It has been stated continue…