P2P

10 P E E R T O P E E R : I L T A ' S Q U A R T E R L Y M A G A Z I N E | W I N T E R 2 0 2 0 F R O M T H E P U B L I C A T I O N S L I A I S O N G iven that 2020 brought drastic change on many fronts in the risk-averse legal services industry, it was indeed a catalyst for adaption, if not unmitigated acceptance of change. In my opinion, I see core competencies making a comeback in litigation support work to ensure proper data is identified and preserved with integrity and attention to process. These tenets were developed to address the inclusion of electronic files in the discovery process are well-suited to addressing how some (most?) client data may be handled with a differently connected workforce. The core competencies are around the processes - technology tools come and go - but "good process is good process". Innovation may be focused to highlight skill and artistry in new ways to automate, but the underlying processes provide the defensible foundation for managing client data. I selected and stayed with litigation support as a specialty because I appreciate that every client and case is different. I like that the discovery process is the same as that originally designed– we just plug in technology tools to attain efficiencies. The factual and legal issues vary widely, however the overall process remains the standard. In my experience, it can be an effort to obtain a complete picture of the client's data use, but through 2019 it is not usually a significant challenge. Now, considering the workf lows necessitated by 2020, companies have a workforce that is displaced, remote and striving to succeed, often with the entire household underfoot. Process shortcuts are often the first solution to cure the lack of time, too much work, poor connectivity and using personal computers for work. Processes for creating, modifying, disseminating and storing files may be 'shortcutted' outside of their prescribed network destination, or even the work environment as a whole. I believe that litigation support will have to adapt to address the resulting data challenges that our client's face. 2021 - All Things Governance Moving forward discovery management will require more attention to details at the onset of the discovery process. Using the Electronic Discovery Reference Model (www.edrm.net) as the industry-standard work flow — the activities on the left will become much more relevant as we work with Litigation Support Look Ahead to 2021

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