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Courtney Writes
"Help Me Help You!"
Talking Points to Get Colleagues on the E-Discovery Bandwagon
Dear Courtney,
I'm a litigation support manager at a large firm in Chicago. Our firm is relatively tech-savvy in most areas, but we are having a difficult time convincing our attorneys to try online document review in discovery. Many of the associates are eager to use electronic discovery technology, but most of the partners are still a bit reluctant. What can I do to convince them that electronic discovery is efficient and cost-effective?
Zoe C.
Chicago
Dear Zoe,
When desktop computers emerged as legitimate business tools in the late 1980s, many companies were slow to adopt their use. Before spending the money, decision makers had to be convinced of the benefits: increased efficiency, speed, accuracy, and, ultimately, lower costs. Today, the idea of an office without computers is virtually unheard of.
Similarly, some law firms today have yet to move beyond the antiquated paper review process and adopt electronic review. Skeptical attorneys give a number of common reasons for their reluctance. Some say they prefer to review paper. Others are simply hesitant to try something new. Many believe that electronic review is expensive. Although most lawyers and their clients have realized these objections are outweighed by the benefits of electronic discovery, some skeptics remain.
The chart below includes some common objections and corresponding talking points to help attorneys understand the value of using an online review application.
Paper Review
Objection
We prefer to review paper. Why should we switch to online review?
Talking Points
It's faster.
Electronic discovery will save a significant amount time, particularly before and during the review process. On the front end, gathering and printing paper documents, then making multiple sets of the entire document collection for paper review can take weeks, even months. With electronic discovery, you can begin reviewing documents within 48 hours. During the review process, powerful search tools narrow the set of potentially relevant documents in just seconds. Going through mountains of paper manually not only takes longer, but also increases the chance of overlooking documents containing key search criteria.
Ability to print responsive documents.
For those who strongly prefer to have paper, you can print selected documents from the entire document collection after searches have been run to narrow the data set to only potentially responsive documents.
Case Management Systems
Objection
Our firm uses Concordance or Summation. We've already spent the money and time for training on this system.
Talking Points
Electronic discovery and case management tools are not mutually exclusive.
The first thing to understand is that case management systems such as Summation or Concordance and electronic discovery services are complementary. Summation and Concordance are great trial support tools-but they are not the logical first step in discovery response. Using the search functionality of an online review service, attorneys can quickly narrow large document sets to identify potentially responsive documents. A working set of the responsive documents can then be exported to a Summation or Concordance database for storage with other trial preparation materials.
It's easy to use.
Anyone can learn to use Applied Discovery's Online Review application in less than 45 minutes. Training for an unlimited number of users is provided at no cost. The web-based model also means there are no hardware or software costs to be absorbed by your firm. Use of online review technology won't add to your firm's infrastructure expenses, and won't impact the spending choices you've already made for case management tools.
Cost
Objection
Electronic discovery is too expensive.
Talking Points
Electronic discovery is less expensive than paper discovery.
A story in the June/July 2003 issue of Law Office Computing reported that the average cost of paper review is $.70 per page while the average cost for electronic discovery is $.23 per page. When you consider that you typically make at least three complete sets of documents during paper discovery (one original, one for review, and at least one for production), printing costs alone can quickly add up. With electronic review, you pay for only one set of documents, and electronic originals are preserved and accessible at all times.
Time is money.
Electronic discovery is considerably faster than paper discovery. Documents are typically ready for review within 48 hours, and powerful search technology speeds the process of identifying responsive materials. The added convenience of worldwide access to one document database also saves time and money by allowing your firm to leverage resources from multiple offices, rather than hiring expensive temporary attorneys and paying room and board for an old fashioned "on site" paper review.
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Ask Courtney
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