Posts on the Topic: ‘Cross-Border eDiscovery’
Computer-Assisted Review… Real Results. Real Value.
Tremendous benefits and value can be realized by firms and companies deploying computer-assisted review eDiscovery solutions.
The eDiscovery Paradigm has Shifted, Now What?
Technology leveraged solutions have set the blogosphere and the legal industry aflutter with promises of massive cost savings, lightning fast review and everything but the kitchen sink. Predictive coding, advanced analytics, algorithms and statistical analysis are rapidly reshaping the way that document review is conducted. But where does the talk stop and real results begin when it comes to practical application of these new technologies? More importantly, how much can an organization, considering the various solutions on the market, hope to save at the end of the day?
Cost-Benefit Analysis of Computer-Assisted Review
Nearly every practitioner in the eDiscovery space is familiar with the now infamous February opinion by Judge Andrew J. Peck in Da Silva Moore v. Publicis Groupe. This opinion paves the way for increasing utilization of advanced technologies to augment or replace traditional models of linear review. As a result, law firms and corporations no longer need to fear being penalized for using alternative non-linear technologies. Despite this green light, practitioners still need to carefully evaluate the spectrum of tools available, their tangible impact on a case and the potential risks and rewards that the technology poses.
In order to accurately analyze the risk-reward matrix for application of computer leveraged solutions, a practitioner must first understand several factors:
- What specific variation of computer leveraged solution is being prescribed?
- What savings in terms of time and money will be generated from this application?
- How likely or large are the risks posed by application of this technology?
Client Success Story
Computer-Assisted Review (CAR) in Action
Challenge
Take a recent case study from a client that engaged Hudson Legal to assist in providing a global eDiscovery solution. There was an SEC investigation relating to a series of credit default swap transactions between a European utility company and three large financial institutions. The portfolios of these credit default swaps were under the management of our client under the terms of four separate portfolio management agreements. There was ongoing litigation relating to these swaps in the UK and Germany, when the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a request for information surrounding these transactions. To add complexity to these efforts, there were four separate information custodians holding data regarding the transactions.
The client needed to promptly respond to a request for information, and execute discovery with multiple information custodians. They had obligation to provide the requested documents to the SEC quickly and with a minimum amount of unnecessary review of irrelevant documents. They had a further challenge in that the primary custodian of concern had a volume of data that exceeded the combined total of all other data in the case. Traditional eyes on every document review would have cost an estimated $175,000+ and would have entailed manually reviewing 363,000 documents.
The client needed an affordable and accurate way to deliver the requested documents to the SEC quickly, but the traditional linear solutions could not deliver…
Solution
To deliver a fast, efficient, and accurate review a bifurcated eDiscovery Solution was implemented. This solution utilized Relativity® computer-assisted review to quickly identify documents relevant to the SEC request, combined with linear review for the smaller document set obtained from multiple custodians.
Results
In this case the risk of non-compliance with the SEC deadline and the potential for a single custodian to derail the entire review motivated the client to leverage computer-assisted review. This yielded a 49% cost savings over traditional linear review as well as substantial reduction in the time of review, with a 95% confidence level (+/- 2.5%). A total of 184,000 documents were ultimately reviewed with a net savings of 178,339 documents and $87,186.
So, Now What?
This solution was by no means simple, nor was it the equivalent of pushing an easy button and waiting for the 229 responsive documents to magically materialize out of the 363,000-document “haystack”. But it does demonstrate how, through thoughtful and selective application of technology, companies and firms can drastically reduce the number of documents that have to be manually analyzed. The two-tiered approach, coupled with statistical sampling, QC and validation create a defensible process in support of the overall application of computer-assisted solutions.
In a world that offers a wide spectrum of global eDiscovery solutions, the role of the practitioner and their eDiscovery solutions provider is central to the success of a computer-assisted document review. Advanced technology has the potential to save valuable time and resources, when deployed in a thoughtful and deliberate way. These technologies are only as effective as the practitioners wielding them, and should not be thought of in a vacuum but rather as an intersection of man and machine that, when optimized, is a time and cost efficient solution to global eDiscovery issues.
IQPC Information Governance & eDisclosure Summit 2012: London
London set the stage for the Information Governance and eDisclosure Summit
Key Themes from the Premier Global Legal Conference
Hudson Legal recently sponsored and presented at the IQPC Information Governance & eDisclosure Management Summit in London. The event gathered experts in Information Governance, eDisclosure, Technology, Managed Review and Consulting from around the globe. The themes that resonated throughout the presentations and panel discussions include:
- The need for thoughtful proactive information governance programs that bridge the gap between the Corporate Legal Departments and Information Technologists.
- The dilemma of how to deal with the costs associated with the ever-increasing size and evolving types of data in the world of multinational companies.
- How to manage litigation across boarders given the various privacy laws within the EU and abroad.
- And finally, how do practitioners apply the best in breed technology in response to these issues?
The undercurrent at the event demonstrated that we are on the verge of tectonic shifts in eDiscovery and eDisclosure procedures and processes. In particular it is an exciting time for the UK legal community – there are fundamental changes happening and a chance to be a part of the shifting landscape. Continue reading “IQPC Information Governance & eDisclosure Summit 2012: London” »
International Data Protection and Discovery, Part 2
Read Part 1
Cultural, Legal and Historical differences worldwide drive perceptions of privacy and influence laws and legislation that impact legal discovery.
Global Privacy Differences and Coming Changes to Cross-Border Discovery
Hudson Legal’s continued interview with Kenneth Rashbaum, experienced litigator and often-published author on the topic of international data privacy laws.
Hudson Legal: It seems that other countries value privacy much more than the United States does. Why do you think that is?
Kenneth Rashbaum: There are cultural, historical, and legal reasons that explain why privacy is much more closely held and ingrained into litigation disclosures worldwide:
- Cultural: Privacy has long been considered a fundamental right in Europe and most of the rest of the world, but in the United States it’s more of a legislative benefit. In many countries their fundamental right to privacy is stated in their constitutions, which is the case in countries like Belgium, Brazil, Chile, and Argentina. In the States, we have privacy law segmented by industry: HIPAA for Healthcare, Gramm-Leach-Bliley for Finance and FERPA for Education, but no overarching legislation to protect privacy.
- Historical: In countries that experienced authoritarian regimes, where information was previously used as a tool to locate dissidents, the pendulum swung back the other way once released from these authoritarian regimes. Some of the strictest privacy laws in the world are in countries such as Germany, France, Spain, and Italy, to name a few.
- Legal: In civil law countries (all of the EU except the UK, plus Mexico, South America countries and most of Asia) the notion of discovery is entirely different from here in the US. Discovery, particularly of personal data, is far more circumscribed.
Continue reading “International Data Protection and Discovery, Part 2” »
International Data Protection and eDiscovery
Exploring Impending Changes in Global Privacy Laws and the Implications for Multinational Corporations
Privacy concerns and changing legislation worldwide will continue to drive the evolution of global discovery.
Global businesses have complicated operational considerations. From technology management and legal implications to human resources conduct and accounting procedures, cultural differences, laws and regulations directly impact the way they conduct themselves in the global marketplace. At Hudson Legal, we experience this regularly in the form of an ever-increasing need to advise and execute on the stipulations of cross-border discovery. To take a deep-dive into this intriguing intersection of law and international business, we recently sat down with Kenneth Rashbaum, an experienced litigator and often-published author on the topic of international data privacy laws.
Hudson Legal (HL): Today, you wanted to discuss two recent developments stateside and abroad that are expected to significantly impact international data protection and discovery?
Kenneth Rashbaum (KR): Yes, those developments include:
- The American Bar Association (ABA) House of Delegates recently passed Resolution 103 urging US courts to respect foreign laws on data protection and privacy
- The proposed revisions to the European Union Privacy Directives, which, if accepted, should be passed into law within the next two years
HL: You were chair of the drafting team for ABA Resolution 103, can you explain the intent and potential impact of the resolution?
Continue reading “International Data Protection and eDiscovery” »
Subscribe by RSS