In a world where technology runs our lives, the legal field has had to adapt to keep up with the times. One way that lawyers have had to change the way they practice law is by using e-discovery software.
Touted as a way to save time and money, e-discovery software has become increasingly popular in the last few years. But do you need Electronic Discovery Software? This guide will explore the advantages and disadvantages of e-discovery software to help you decide for your law firm.
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What is E-Discovery Software?
E-discovery software is a computer program that helps lawyers collect, organize, and analyze electronically stored information (ESI), such as emails and other communication, for use in litigation. E-discovery software can be used for a variety of tasks, including:
Searching and identifying relevant ESI
What e-discovery software does is help you make sense of all the ESI that might be relevant to your case. For example, email parser e-discovery software can help you quickly review and analyze many emails to identify the most relevant ones to your case.
Organizing and analyzing ESI
E-discovery software can also help you organize all the ESI you have collected. This is important because lawyers often have to review and analyze large amounts of ESI. By organizing the ESI, e-discovery software can help you save time in your review.
Reviewing and producing ESI
E-discovery software can also be used to help you review and produce ESI for use in litigation. For example, e-discovery software can help you highlight relevant ESI and redact privileged information.
Types of E-Discovery Software
Email Parser:
Email parser e-discovery software helps you quickly review and analyze large amounts of email data. How it works is you load the email data into the software, and the software will parse (or organize) the data for you.
This can be a huge time saver because it can take lawyers hours to review and analyze large amounts of email data.
Prediction Software:
Prediction software is e-discovery software that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to predict which ESI is most likely to be relevant to your case.
How it works is you load the ESI into the software, and the software will analyze the data and predict which ESI is most likely to be relevant. This can save you time and money because you can focus your review on the most relevant ESI.
Litigation Hold Software:
Litigation hold software is a type of e-discovery software that helps you place a legal hold on ESI. A legal hold is an order from a court that requires you to preserve ESI that might be relevant to a lawsuit.
How it works is you load the ESI into the software, and the software will place a legal hold on the ESI. This is important because if you do not place a legal hold on ESI, you might be required to produce it in litigation, which can be very costly.
Factors to Consider
How much ESI you have to review
If you have a large amount of ESI to review, e-discovery software can help you save time in your review. But if you have a small amount of ESI, say less than 10 GB, you might not need e-discovery software.
The types of ESI you have to review
If the ESI you have to review is mostly text-based, such as email, e-discovery software can be helpful. But if the ESI is mostly non-text-based, such as images or audio files, e-discovery software might not be as helpful.
The complexity of the ESI
If the ESI is simple, such as an email with only a few recipients, e-discovery software can be helpful. But if the ESI is complex, like an email with many recipients or attachments, e-discovery software might not be as helpful.
The size of your law firm
If you have a large law firm with many lawyers, e-discovery software can be helpful. But if you have a small law firm with only a few lawyers doing e-discovery, e-discovery software might not be as helpful.
What Are the Advantages of Using E-Discovery Software?
There are several advantages to using e-discovery software, including:
1. Increased Efficiency
E-discovery software can help you save time in your review by organizing and analyzing the ESI for you. This can be a huge advantage if you have a lot of ESI to review. In fact, e-discovery software can help you save up to 50% of the time you would spend reviewing ESI manually.
2. Better Accuracy
E-discovery software can also help you be more accurate in your review. For example, e-discovery software can help you identify privileged information that you might otherwise miss.
This can be a critical advantage in litigation because if you fail to produce privileged information, you could be subject to sanctions.
E-discovery software tends to be more accurate than a manual review because it can search and analyze ESI more quickly and thoroughly.
3. Cost savings
E-discovery software can also help you save money. For example, e-discovery software can help you reduce the amount of time you spend reviewing ESI. This can save you money on attorney fees.
In addition, e-discovery software can help you avoid sanctions by helping you produce privileged information. Sanctions can be very costly, so e-discovery software can help you save money in the long run.
4. Better organization
A law firm can be a very chaotic place. E-discovery software can help you organize your ESI so you can find what you need when you need it.
This is important because if you’re not organized, you could miss critical information that could be the key to your case.
What Are the Disadvantages of Using E-Discovery Software?
1. Cost
While we’ve previously discussed how e-discovery software can save you money, it’s important to note that e-discovery software can also be expensive upfront.
The cost of e-discovery software can range from a few hundred dollars to several thousand dollars. The exact cost will depend on the features you need and the size of your law firm.
2. Training
E-discovery software can also be difficult to use, especially if you’re unfamiliar with it. If you’re not careful, you could waste a lot of time figuring out how to use the software. Older people might have more difficulty using e-discovery software than younger people.
Of course, you can solve this problem by training your staff to use e-discovery software. But this will take time and money.
3. Limited Functionality
E-discovery software can also be limited in its functionality. For example, e-discovery software might not be able to search all types of ESI, like images and audio files.
In addition, e-discovery software might not be able to search for specific information like social security numbers or dates of birth. That said, e-discovery software is constantly evolving, so the functionality of e-discovery software is likely to improve over time.
3. Incompatibility
Another disadvantage of e-discovery software is that it might not be compatible with your current systems. For example, e-discovery software might not work with your email client or document management system.
This can be a big problem because it might mean you have to purchase new software or upgrade your current software.
4. Maintenance
E-discovery software also requires maintenance. For example, you might need to periodically update the e-discovery software to ensure it’s compatible with your current systems.
Conclusion: Do you need e-discovery software?
E-discovery software can be a great asset for law firms, but it’s not right for everyone. The decision of whether or not to use e-discovery software depends on the specific needs of your law firm.
If you have a lot of ESI to review, e-discovery software can save you time and money. E-discovery software can also be helpful if you’re dealing with sensitive information like privileged information.
On the other hand, e-discovery software might not be right for your law firm if you have a small amount of ESI to review or if you’re not dealing with sensitive information.
Ultimately, the decision of whether or not to use e-discovery software is up to you. Assess your needs and make a decision based on what’s best for your law firm.
