Comments on 3 Geeks and a Law Blog: I'm Calling It!! - There's an "E-Discovery Bubble"...

A major issue driving e-discovery costs is the fac...

2009-08-17T12:15:42.821-05:00

A major issue driving e-discovery costs is the fact that the attorneys do not understand the e-discovery trenches. Too many lawyers blindly rely on the e-discovery tech community--not many of whom are known for transparency--for what can and should be done on a given e-discovery project.

In my humble opinion, here are two interrelated steps that will help improve the delivery of e-discovery services and help firms and clients better manage costs:

1. Lawyers need to visit the e-discovery sausage factory and see how it is made. This will help lawyers train themselves on how e-discovery projects are actually done, and then lawyers need to convey this to judges in simple plain English.

2. Lawyers and law firm clients must demand transparency from the e-discovery community so they really understand the steps involved. Insist that your e-discovery vendor allow you to tag along on a evidence preservation project and then visit the e-discovery vendor’s facility to see how the evidence is actually crunched, culled and produced.

These two steps will go along way to helping firms and client gain a greater understanding of the process, and once they see the process, they can make informed decisions on the approach to take, and where to spend the e-discovery budget.

Thanks and please keep the great blog posts coming!

Mark Walters
www.solutionsESI.com

I think both Moshe and Julie have the right ideas ...

2009-08-11T10:39:52.420-05:00

I think both Moshe and Julie have the right ideas here. Things have to get better on both the front end of EDD and the back end of EDD. Unfortunately, this means better guidelines and processes throughout the cycle of records management, retention, and discovery. Unfortunately, I think that what will result will be a frustration on the backend of the process (big popping E-Discovery bubble) rather than companies, firms and courts taking a more careful and long-term approach to the problem.

Spot on! And I think the bubble's bursting wi...

2009-08-11T10:23:30.777-05:00

Spot on! And I think the bubble's bursting will be the grand opening for RIM professionals. Quality records and information management strategy and programs are the true antidote to exorbitant e-discovery costs.

RIM consultants be at the ready - your time has come!

I'm totally behind you on this one. Unfortunat...

2009-08-11T09:54:15.654-05:00

I'm totally behind you on this one. Unfortunately, there is a serious need for e-discovery and the cost is not entirely ridiculous.
What feeds the problem is the lack of best practices or the like. As long as a company's electronic records are an unmanageable mess, the e-discovery will be an unmanageable expense.
My concern is that the bubble will burst before a reasonable solution is embraced. Will that leave us with more oversight legislation regarding e-records? Increased fines? Relaxing of e-discovery expectations, allowing possibly crucial records to slip between the cracks?