Resources for E-Discovery and Litigation Support Professionals
Have you ever needed a reliable resource to help solve issues related to e-discovery/litigation support law or project management but not known where to turn for information? As a courtesy to its members, ECALSM has created a document that lists a number of such resources, ranging from case law update blogs to podcasts. At the August 2011 ECALSM meeting, executive board members Alston Walker and Ross Gotler presented this document to attendees and provided a live demonstration of a number of the resources.
Many thanks to Alston and Ross for presenting and to Salvatore Mancuso and Proskauer LLP for hosting the meeting. Click here to view the document "Resources for E-Discovery and Litigation Support Professionals."
May 24, 2011
Processing – Considerations and Practical Solutions The processing of electronically stored information (ESI) is an essential phase of the e-discovery process. It is also complex, especially for e-discovery and litigation support professionals who are constantly faced with challenges in managing increasing volumes of ESI under tight deadlines.
At the May 2011 ECALSM meeting, we discussed considerations and practical solutions in addressing the processing of ESI. We addressed questions such as: What are the considerations of processing internally versus using a service provider? What is the makeup of the data? How do you handle exceptions? How do production requirements affect the processing specification? What are the general processing considerations for specific data types?
Many thanks to Jim Ma and Akin Gump for hosting the meeting and to Stephen Dooley and Ursula Pando for presenting on our meeting topic.
Click here to view notes from this meeting along with the presentation. March 29, 2011 Certification for Litigation Support and E-Discovery Professionals
Litigation support and electronic discovery professionals, with diverse levels of education and experience, come from a variety of backgrounds. Our still relatively new industry has grown and evolved significantly over the years. Is now the time for professional certification, standardized qualifications and/or formalized education?
At the March ECALSM meeting, we welcomed representatives from three different organizations that are working to establish certification within our industry. These representatives discussed their objectives, accomplishments, and next steps and answered related questions from ECALSM members.
Many thanks to the Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists (ACEDS), the Association of Litigation Support Professionals (ALSP), and the Organization of Legal Professionals (OLP) for their participation and to Orrick Herrington for hosting the meeting.
Click here to view notes from this meeting.
November 17 and 18, 2010
ECALSM/ARMA: Preservation, Legal Hold and Data Accessibility Records Management is a critical component of managing legal holds and meeting the duty to preserve information that is potentially relevant to litigation. A proactive and collaborative process can facilitate reducing risk and minimizing costs.
At these presentations, collaborations between the ARMA Metro NYC Chapter, the ARMA Northern New Jersey Chapter, and ECALSM, representatives of ARMA and ECALSM discused items to consider when addressing the needs of Preservation, Legal Hold and Data Accessibility.
For more information follow the links below:
November 11, 2010
Successfully Leading and Managing a Litigation Support Department
Litigation support is a fast-paced and demanding profession. In the current economic environment, shrinking budgets, enormous workloads, long hours and the pressures of numerous competing priorities are common realities for most litigation support professionals. To succeed under these conditions requires more than good managerial skills, job knowledge and experience. It takes leadership. No longer a mainly technology-focused function, Litigation support has transformed into a business-oriented profession. Litigation support professionals are actively involved in promoting and supporting the use of technology in litigation, as well as advising lawyers on its implications to case law, operating as profit centers, assisting in business development and performing a whole host of other business-related activities. We are constantly required to motivate, influence and inspire our colleagues and customers in order to succeed in these endeavors. This is what leaders do.
At this ECALSM meeting, hosted by Winston & Strawn, we discussed the differences between leading and managing, leadership qualities, and best practices you can use to lead in your organization. September 28, 2010 At our September meeting, hosted by Jones Day, we discussed "The Evolving Relationship Between Litigation Support and Paralegal Groups"
We addressed specific topics such as discovery management, best practices in privilege log workflow and preparation, deposition preparation, and various technical resources that may assist in our day-to-day tasks as we support the attorneys, and encouraged ECALSM members to bring members of their firm or corporation's paralegal team to the meeting.
June 23, 2010 ECALSM / NYC B-Discovery Event to support the Life Preservers Project
NYC B-Discovery and ECALSM joined forces for a one time social event to raise money and awareness for the Life Preservers Project, a non-profit organization whose mission is to raise funds and awareness for the victims of sex trafficking in the US. The trafficking of women and children is a multi-billion dollar a year industry with a strong presence in the New York tri-state area.
May 26, 2010
Data Management How difficult is it to increase storage capacity at your firm? Does your firm's retention policy cover data stored by Litigation Support? Does data age and if so, should the law firm/corporation discriminate in the way they manage data? Should your firm recover cost associated with storage; how would your clients react? Although managing the expansion of data storage and all that goes with it is not new, the issues have matured and have become more complex.
The focus of the May 2010 ECALSM meeting at Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP was Data Management. We discussed our ever-expanding storage needs, opportunities involving cost recovery, security and accessibility challenges, and archiving protocols.
For those unable to attend, the presentation from the meeting is available online.
Implications of Recent Case Law
Recent decisions about the legal obligations of parties relating to litigation holds and ESI preservation and spoliation are providing lawyers and e-discovery professionals alike with new guidance on best practices in the e-discovery process. At our April meeting, we discussed Judge Shira Scheindlin's decision in Pension Committee of the Univ. of Montreal Pension Plan, et al., v. Banc of America Securities, LLC, et al. and Judge Lee Rosenthal's decision in Rimkus Rimkus Consulting Group, Inc. v. Cammarata, and how e-discovery professionals can apply the lessons learned in these decisions. Many thanks to Emily Cobb, Discovery Attorney at Ropes and Gray, for her presentation. For those unable to attend, please see the notes from the April meeting. Overview of the Cases: Pension Committee of the Univ. of Montreal Pension Plan, et al., v. Banc of America Securities, LLC, et al. was a recent case in the Southern District of New York that illustrates the risks associated with a fairly common e-discovery practice known as custodial-delegated preservation and search. With custodial-delegated preservation and search, outside counsel lawyers rely on client personnel to perform preservation and search activities during electronic discovery. In her lengthy opinion, Judge Shira Scheindlin granted sanctions against 13 plaintiffs for various failures in their collection, preservation and production of electronically stored information. These included failure to issue hold notices as required, failure to preserve potentially responsive electronically stored information, and failure to collect responsive documents. Rimkus Consulting Group, Inc. v. Cammarata is a more recent case from the Southern District of Texas that illustrates a different set of risks associated with custodial self-collection. In this case, the court found that defendants engaged in intentional spoliation of evidence (failure to preserve relevant ESI, active deletion of ESI, disposal of computers, etc.) As a result, the court ordered an adverse inference instruction be given to the jury. January 14, 2010
Emerging Tools and Technology
What cool tools and technology have you used or heard about? Are there any potential game-changers for lawyers or e-discovery/litigation support professionals? What hardware or software are you using that you just can't live without? At our January 2010 meeting, we had a lively roundtable discussion and exchange of ideas about emerging technology and cool tools in e-discovery and litigation support. Thank you to Ropes & Gray LLP for hosting the meeting. December 1, 2009
Early Case Assessment: Part II Our last meeting of 2009 was the second of a two-part series addressing the efficiencies and practical use of Early Case Assessment tools and methodologies. Vendor participants Valora Technologies, Inc. and Digital Reef, Inc. presented on trends and practices in Early Case Assessment. Thanks to Valora and Digital Reef and also to Weil, Gotshal, and Manges for hosting the meeting.
July 30, 2009
Early Case Assessment: Evolution and Early Phases
There has been a lot of recent discussion about the benefits of Early Case Assessment in the litigation support arena, but we also hear the phrase "Early Case Assessment" defined in different ways. In this first of a multi-part series addressing the efficiencies and practical use of ECA tools and methodologies, we examined the evolution of Early Case Assessment and explored practical options to investigate the preservation, preview and selection of potential evidence. Vendor participants included Red File and Kazeon, and the meeting was hosted by Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP April 22, 2009
Our April 2009 meeting was held at Lowenstein Sandler. The topic was "Maintaining Litigation Support Services in Challenging Economic Times." ECALSM members engaged in a roundtable discussion on a variety of topics, including staffing, budgeting, software, training, vendors, and creative solutions to help get the job done and keep your people and projects on target.
February 18, 2009
At our February meeting, held at Fish & Richardson, three trial solutions providers presented to ECALSM members. Topics included trial management, technology setup, courtroom and temporary office logistics, graphics, litigation cost management, and documentation and evidence preparation. Thanks to Impact Trial Consulting, InfoGraphics, and Array Technology Group & Legal Images for their presentations. November 19, 2008
The topic of our November meeting, held at Wilkie Farr & Gallagher, was Litigation Support Data Storage and Management. There was a roundtable discussion of experiences with servers, SANs, space requirements, expansion of space, budgeting and financial considerations, data organization, data backup procedures, archiving procedures, and security and user access. September 17, 2008
At our September meeting, we concluded our three-part roundtable discussion Who Are We? Litigation Support Careers and Departments. Thanks to Stephen Dooley and Sullivan & Cromwell for hosting the meeting and providing lunch. August 6, 2008 Our August meeting was on Wednesday, August 6, 2008 at Ropes & Gray. We continued our discussion Who are We? Litigation Support Careers and Departments . . . Part Two. June 18, 2008 Our June meeting was on Wednesday, June 18, 2008 at Lowenstein Sandler. The topic was: Who are We? Litigation Support Careers and Departments. The meeting featured a roundtable discussion about the current organizations and structures in the litigation/practice support and electronic discovery professions. ECALSM members discussed roles, titles, training, recruiting, retention, career paths, reporting structures and more, sharing the various challenges we all face as a result of the increased complexity surrounding the profession. If you would like to host an upcoming meeting, please contact President Salvatore Mancuso. |
|
|
Meetings |