LITIGATION AND PRACTICE SUPPORT
23
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An Australian Perspective on Avoiding Hidden E-Discovery Costs
An Australian Perspective
on Avoiding Hidden
E-Discovery Costs
by Shengshi Zhao of NuLegal Pty Ltd
We are in the era of cloud computing, where the terabyte (TB)
is gradually replacing the gigabyte (GB) as the standard data storage
unit. Cloud technology is bringing big data into every part of our lives
–– from entertainment to corporate infrastructure, from evidence
collection to discovery production. Naturally, this increase in digital
footprints is causing the difficulty and costs of the e-discovery
process to expand.
Unlike a growth in hard copy volume, when data volume
increases, it aracts lile visibility from the client, and therefore
heightened costs are overlooked. Vendors and legal technology
services (LTS) staff sometimes feel more comfortable sticking to
traditional approaches that keep these hidden costs undiscovered,
while litigators rarely understand the process well enough to
implement a cost-saving strategy. Clients are le to cover the
e-discovery bill in frustration.
Traditional approaches are being challenged. In this digital age,
it is time to adapt to a new cost-saving workflow. We in LTS must look
at the methods we have been relying on for years and ask ourselves
a question: Is this the best way, or are we guilty of incurring hidden
costs?
Hidden Costs in Early Case Assessment (ECA)
The classic E-Discovery Reference Model includes data identification,
collection, processing, review, analysis and production. In the cloud
era, data volumes are forcing us to reconsider this classic approach.
Imagine that a client shows up with one TB of data for discovery.
That means you will deal with approximately 10 million documents.
In a case like this, extensive analysis needs to happen before
