Digital White Papers

ILTA WHITE PAPER: JUNE 2014 WWW.ILTANET.ORG 29 A HYBRID APPROACH TO LITIGATION SUPPORT HOW DO I TIFF A SPREADSHEET? Many law firms still view litigation support software the same way they did 10 years ago, when the software consisted entirely of a local install of Summation iBlaze or Concordance. These platforms were developed in the late 1980s to provide a linear list of scanned images of paper documents alongside coded fields of information (document date, Bates number, author, recipient, etc.). But the concept of a "document" has changed over the last several years; it is no longer limited to the four corners of a sheet of paper. We collect electronically stored information (ESI) in litigation matters that includes email conversations (and attachments), spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, audio files, movies, photos and more. None of these files have "pages" until we click "Print," yet we persist in trying to squeeze these digital varmints into platforms designed for scanned text. Instead of boxes of paper, clients today send CDs, DVDs, external hard drives and thumb drives of "document" files. They even share Dropbox folders with us. This digital evidence includes everything from bloated .PST files to QuickBooks databases to encrypted backup files. It's then up to law firms to provide a tool for lawyers to sort through the hundreds/thousands/millions of files that must be reviewed. No single tool can conquer the entire ESI mountain. Although many vendors tout their product as covering the entire Electronic Discovery Reference Model (EDRM) spectrum, it is rare to find one for which that claim is legitimate. Lawyers might prefer to purchase a product that will solve all their litigation support needs so they can focus on the "real" work of litigation. Unfortunately, that's not the reality of litigation support technology. Microsoft Word lets us create documents, but we turn to other software when we need to manage a calendar, track time or surf the Internet. In the same way, a variety of software tools and utilities are necessary for a successful, comprehensive litigation support strategy. HOW TO DRIVE A HYBRID On one level, a hybrid approach could simply be the investment by your firm in multiple tools and software platforms to handle your litigation support needs. You might have one or two tools for processing data, a platform or two for reviewing digital documents, another tool for managing transcripts and perhaps yet another tool for creating production sets and privilege logs. Most litigation support professionals already have a digital tool belt laden with different utilities they use to examine data. Most firms taking a hybrid approach aim to balance the effective use of in-house tools with outside resources. Some matters are less complicated than others and can be easily handled in-house. Other matters are complex and benefit from advanced analysis tools or technology- assisted review approaches that the firm might not be capable of handling internally with confidence. A hybrid approach doesn't appeal to law firms that perceive it as a lack of standardized and consistent practices. The important concern, however, is the quality of technical support a firm is providing for its clients' litigation. The big decision when considering a hybrid approach to litigation support is when to outsource work and when to keep work in-house.

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