Predictive Coding. Conceptual Clustering. Visual Analysis. Computers that can win on Jeopardy. New technologies related to the review of electronic information are being announced almost daily. It seems from the hype that we will soon have a “press here” button that will give a lawyer all of the relevant documents without any work.
Reality Check: while all of these technologies help to wade through the continually growing volume of electronic information, they are really only options which must be considered by those charged with the management of large volumes of electronic data. Leading edge technology is not for everyone, nor for every case. Even where its application will reduce costs and effort, there must be a balance struck between technology and human resources.
Introducing new technology into any process is fraught with uncertainty. To alleviate some of this uncertainty and ensure that the proper tool is selected for each job, Wortzman Nickle systematically analyses new and existing technological tools that assist in large volume document reviews. We know what technology will provide real benefit in any given situation, and will actually assist, rather than deter, human reviewers to get the job done faster, more accurately, and cost effectively.
Whatever role technology plays in any litigation search, and however sophisticated it becomes, human review will always retain a place alongside the technology as a way of getting quickly and efficiently to the document set that matters. If we leave aside those who sensibly and genuinely see the need to consider all possible ways of handling documents efficiently, there are growing external pressures on the rest to do so; they include increasingly active management by judges, competition with others for client business and, in some cases, mere survival as a litigation practice.
If you have any questions concerning litigation technology, reach out to Wortzman Nickle for help.
Tags: Document Review, e-discovery, e-discovery Canada, e-Discovery Costs, e-discovery processes, e-discovery project management, e-discovery software, e-discovery solutions, ediscovery, ediscovery Canada, ediscovery review, lawyer review, managing e-discovery costs, predictive coding, Technology
Blog | admin October 26, 2011 | 
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To paraphrase Rudyard Kipling, “If you can keep your head, while all others are losing theirs and blaming it on you – you’ve probably created a good plan”.
In many engagements, Wortzman Nickle is brought into the fray long after work has started. We are asked to take over bits and pieces of what one or more groups of people have been working on. Although we are presented with hard drives, images, backup tapes and paper, very rarely will we be provided with that key ingredient – “The Plan”.
Whether you are in-house counsel, outside counsel or a third party consultant, in many discovery matters, you’ll be brought into a situation and asked to “handle it”. The first daunting challenge that you will face is getting everyone to slow down and reassess. There’s such a huge desire to keep things moving that no one wants to take the time to sort out exactly what has transpired and try to link that to the eventual desired outcomes.
If you’re put into one of these situations it is important that you’re not pulled in to the overall panic. There are some basic steps to take:
- Take a moment to write down the issues involved and potential outcomes
- Determine how much has been spent already on specific tasks, and whether the results were beneficial to the final goal.
- Set out exactly what human and technical resources are available
- Prepare a written plan of what will be done, when and by whom
To begin, catalogue the issues and resources that are available and to lay out a concise plan for how to track them.
Creating the plan is, however, just the start. Another important element is in having all the stakeholders sign off on their part of the plan. Ensure that there is an approval or verification step so that everyone understands their part of the plan. Insist on getting a response to sending out project files and ensure that there is a single point of contact that will help with tracking all of the affiliated tasks. A strong project plan needs constant monitoring.
Establish regular updates via email or conference call to ensure that all parties know of project progress. To achieve group collaboration, consider using a shared planning tool. Among other things, this helps cut down the “blame game” emails that tend to work their way around. If you’re sharing project management files, there’s all kinds of great ways using flags and colors (and in some cases even sounds) to alert everyone interested as to who has fallen down on the job, in a timely and constructive manner, so that steps can be taken to bring the project back on track.
Some of these points may seem to be fairly basic or common sense. Nevertheless, as in many areas of life, common sense tends to go out the window when a crisis hits. Taking a moment to assemble a plan, allows you to remain focused on what needs to be done to ensure a successful outcome.
Tags: discovery, discovery plan, e-discovery, e-discovery Canada, e-Discovery Costs, e-discovery processes, e-discovery project management, ediscovery, ediscovery Canada, lawyer review, managing e-discovery costs
Blog | admin October 4, 2011 | Comments (0)
Over the past several years, the Susans have worked with a significant number of Canada’s top law firms. Several of these firms have invited us in-house, to speak to groups of litigators and business lawyers about the perils and opportunities inherent in e-discovery, and the benefits of proper records management. Each session is 90 minutes in length. These presentations have evolved over time to keep pace with the changes in technology and approach to discovery.
We are pleased to announce that these Wortzman Nickle education programs have now been accredited by the Law Society of Upper Canada as follows:
- Our e-Discovery program has been accredited for 1 hour toward the New Member Requirement and 0.5 hours toward the Professionalism Requirement for ongoing members.
- Our 90 minute Records Management program has been accredited for 1.5 hours toward the New Member Requirement and 1 hour toward the Professionalism Requirement for ongoing members.
These time-effective and interactive sessions are ideal for a lunch meeting or firm retreat. Call us to discuss bringing these sessions to your team.
Tags: discovery, discovery plan, e-discovery, e-discovery Canada, e-discovery processes, e-discovery project management, ediscovery, ediscovery Canada, lawyer review, managing e-discovery costs, meet and confer, Proportionality, Records Management, Sedona Canada Principles, Sedona Canada Principles ®
Blog | admin April 15, 2011 | Comments (0)
On March 5th, the New York Times published an article entitled “Armies of Expensive Lawyers, Replaced by Cheaper Software” which discussed the “new e-discovery software that can analyze millions of documents in a fraction of the time, and at a fraction of the cost consumed by human lawyers, even deducing patterns of behaviour”. It discussed the explosion of electronically stored information, the technology used to analyze that data and how all this has disrupted the legal job market.
The article provided a clear and concise overview of the new systems available to assist legal teams. However, the conclusion that these technologies will replace “expensive lawyers” misses the mark. All of the technologies mentioned in the article require a combination of machine and human interaction in order to operate. Humans have to “teach” the computer to identify relevant information. As with any educational process, the more highly skilled the teacher, the better the lesson will be. What the technologies will replace are lawyers working at very basic levels without a strong understanding of the case.
Although the new technologies will force lawyers to learn new ways to approach document discovery, the technologies are just one cog in the legal machine. Lawyers still need to understand the content of the documents to build their case. The new systems will help lawyers to zero in on the documents containing the relevant content.
No matter how sophisticated a computer system gets, it can’t make subjective evaluations. The legal process is not black and white – it’s ultimately based on judgement and inference. As a result, it will always require highly skilled talent.
Tags: costs, discovery, e-discovery, e-discovery Canada, e-Discovery Costs, e-discovery processes, e-discovery project management, e-discovery solutions, early case assessment, ediscovery, ediscovery Canada, lawyer review, litigation support tools, managing e-discovery costs, Proportionality, review platforms, Technology
In-house e-discovery, Proportionality, e-Discovery Costs, e-discovery in Canada, e-discovery solutions, early case assessment, lawyer review, software and tools | admin March 22, 2011 | Comments (0)
All too often, decisions on what e-discovery solution to implement are based on flashy sales presentations and vague explanations of how the systems function. Rarely does the end result surface in the decision making process. More often than not, the bells and whistles of the product tip the scales.
While a good user interface and flexibility in creating search criteria help to improve the usability of a product, there are other aspects of the product that are equally important, such as:
- The ongoing operating costs – even if the software is purchased outright, that cost needs to be amortized over the life of the product. Many systems have annual maintenance fees that can add up to 25% yearly to the cost of the product. Some products come with a volume fee as well. Since e-discovery vendors are generally much more efficient (due to significantly larger volumes of work) than law firms when it comes to dealing with ESI, many law firms find that they can’t pass the full capital and operating costs of their in-house software onto their clients.
- IT support – law firm IT systems are set up to mainly support the storage of documents. This usually involves relatively little ESI storage space, compared with storing a client’s data during a review (which can run into the hundreds of gigabytes or even terabytes). Although adding storage space is not technically taxing, supporting that added space with the existing IT staff can be a challenge.
- Collaboration – e-discovery solutions are purchased to handle the review of large numbers of documents. This by its very nature necessitates a team approach to the document review project. While collaboration and project management features of software solutions are important, equally important are the network resources required to ensure that each reviewer has sufficient access to allow them to achieve the desired efficiency. A stellar review platform can be rendered unusable by slow network performance.
- e-discovery expertise – an e-discovery solution is just a tool. How that tool is used depends on the capabilities and knowledge of the person wielding it. Craftsmanship and expertise is just as important in e-discovery as it is in furniture building.
It’s all about the end result, not about making the journey in style. Too often, the ultimate process that needs to be completed is not well defined, leading to decisions that don’t work or are so complicated that the new tool never achieves widespread acceptance in the workplace.
Don’t be drawn in by the rhetoric of gurus. So-called authorities all too often focus on the fluff of theory, paying more attention to the means than to the end. There are people out there who talk about e-discovery but aren’t actually working in e-discovery on a day-to-day basis. They will tell you in theory how to do things, but you’ll spend many moons actually figuring out how to do it yourself.
When you need to get from Point A to Point B, consider whether a Chevrolet can do the job as well as a Porsche. Wortzman Nickle can show you the way.
Last week, the Wortzman Nickle home team travelled to Collingwood for the firm’s retreat.
This annual event gave us the opportunity to re-group, review processes and files, and team-build. Guided by a comprehensive agenda and inspired by the beautiful surroundings, our team has emerged stronger and more efficient than ever.
Key topics of interest? Efficient collection and data processing, lawyer review processes and platforms, plus project management best practices ruled the day. We know that being efficient with processes and reporting keeps files on track, on budget, and clients happy.
In the name of team-building, we took on a “strenuous/advanced” mountain hike in the rain, as well as two yoga classes. There’s nothing like sore muscles, exhaustion, and a few headstands to bring a legal team together.
Things to watch for? Wortzman Nickle’s edgy, innovative, advertising campaign, introduced this Spring and to be continued in the Fall. Some other surprises are in store for our firm…stay tuned.
