Bates Numbering is a feature that legal professionals and law firms welcome. Perhaps that’s because it’s mainly used in the field of law. Needless to say, legal documents can contain thousands of pages. But indexing those pages with Bates Numbers makes retrieving information from them for trial an effortless -or at least much simpler- task.

With the ever-expanding amount of Electronically Stored Information (ESI) the concept of proportionality is a critical factor in today’s litigation. While it is difficult to define a “typical” civil case, various sources report the average ESI in a civil case to be 100 GB which equates to 6.5 million printed pages.

First it was the Freshman 15 and Now we battle Coronavirus Corpulence Remember the dreaded “freshman 15” – those 15 pounds most students gain during their freshman year of college? Hopefully those pounds are just a memory now and not a lasting reminder of college days.

Why is it that the things that are good for us are so often just no fun? Things that come to mind are exercise, root canals, and privilege logs. Though these things may seem intimidating, it feels good once they have been accomplished.

Experienced lawyers know that some of the most valuable casework happens before they step into a courtroom or meet with opposing counsel. Not even the most knowledgeable and well-versed attorneys can be expected to remember every precedent, judicial ruling, and local doctrine that might make an impact on a case. It takes an enormous amount of work to find out where a particular case fits into the broader legal framework and what arguments will carry the most weight with a judge or jury. Legal research is a vital part of any lawsuit or legal matter, giving both parties the information they need to support their cases and make a compelling argument.

Redaction is never having to say you are sorry – for the inadvertent disclosure of sensitive or privileged data. With heightened concern regarding Personally Identifiable Information or PII, and the ever-present unease about inadvertent disclosure of confidential information and loss of privilege, an easy to use, reliable redaction tool is a “must have” item when working with Electronically Stored Information.

A recent Federal Court decision is making a big statement about big e-Discovery. In May of 2019 the case Abbott Laboratories et al. v. Adelphia Supply USA (E.D.N.Y), United States Magistrate Judge Lois Bloom pointed to the production of information in one large PDF as a factor in her decision to recommend sanctions be granted and a default judgment be entered against the producing party.

ESI Definition - What is ESI? ESI stands for electronically stored information. Electronically stored information is a legal term broadly defined as any data or documents that are created or stored on electronic media. Types of ESI are often used as electronic evidence in litigation. The United States Federal Rules of Civil Procedure govern attorney obligations for disclosure, review, and production of electronic documents which are relevant to litigation.

eDiscovery can make or break your case. It establishes the scope of litigation for both parties, the documents that must be produced, and the custodians to contact, among other important factors. In essence, the discovery process lays out the rules that lawyers must abide by during a lawsuit as they pertain to gathering, preserving, and sharing relevant documents. A single misstep at this stage could create a competitive disadvantage that will be all but impossible to overcome during the course of a lawsuit or trial.

Discovery is a critical phase of any trial or lawsuit, and can make the difference between a successful case and one that goes horribly awry. Both the requesting and producing party have a number of obligations to meet during the discovery process, whether this done through eDiscovery software or other discovery methods, which are extensively detailed in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26 (FRCP).