About E-Discovery Outsourcing
E-discovery encompasses any process for seeking, locating, securing, and searching electronic data with the intent of using it as evidence in a civil or criminal legal case, or in response to regulatory inquiries. Electronic discovery processes include the collection of information from computers and servers, as well as the reduction of data volumes by applying keywords, data restrictions, and exclusion/inclusion of file types in order to eliminate superfluous information from the body of electronic evidence at the beginning of a case so that attorneys can limit their review to only relevant information.
Challenges in Electronic Discovery
Defensibility of evidence and methods used for its collection is a critical part of electronic discovery. At the same time, deadlines can put pressure on the e-discovery process. Common challenges to efficient and defensible e-discovery include:
- Under-collecting and under-producing, which can lead to missing potential evidence and, in turn, result in courtroom losses, fines, additional litigation, monetary damages, and even criminal charges and damage to corporate reputation.
- Finding too much information and spending too much money on attorney fees to narrow down the pool of evidence.
- Over-reliance on technology as the sole solution to an e-discovery project which, if personnel do not abide by proper e-discovery protocol and best practices, can cause evidence to be tainted and even inadmissible.
- The variety of devices that contain discoverable data, including laptops and computers, backup tapes, smartphones, PDAs, thumb drives, and tablet computers such as the iPad.
Onshore, Offshore, and Dual-Shore Options for Cost Management
Having onshore and offshore options offers flexibility for managing legal costs. Law firms and in-house legal departments typically start onshore for early case assessment or next-day rapid deployment. When cost is an issue, lawyers can elect to move some or all review offshore for savings of up to 50 percent; in serial or portfolio litigation, the savings can be even greater.
Document review staff turnover tends to be very low offshore keeping quality and consistency high as dedicated teams retain institutional knowledge of factual and legal issues.
What to Look for in an E-Discovery Provider
- Breadth of service - A provider that can deliver a complete, end-to-end solution that integrates services and technologies will limit risk in the handoff between steps in the electronic discovery process to ensure maximum defensibility and efficiency.
- Ownership - Some providers offer cobbled-together solutions but don’t own all of the pieces and therefore can’t control the quality of the overall solution.
- People - Ensure the provider has experienced legal talent to provide the best support for your lawyers who are making the legal decisions.
- Scale - A provider that can scale to your specific needs and offer alternative billing options and price stability will help ensure cost consistency.
- Multi-shore capabilities - A provider with strong onshore and offshore offerings gives you cost management flexibility.
Learn about Integreon’s e-discovery solutions.