Tools and Techniques for Defensibly Processing Electronic Data

Pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, if the parties to litigation fail to take reasonable steps to assure that relevant, non-privileged data is produced to opposing parties in response to discovery requests, courts may impose sanctions and may instruct juries to draw an adverse inference. Consequently, parties to litigation must take special care to adhere to defensible standards and practices when processing electronic data, especially since the overwhelming majority of information generated by companies is produced and stored electronically. Because the matter of what constitutes these defensible standards and practices is the subject of so much debate, and the risks of error weigh so heavily in the balance, the need for corporate counsel develop proper procedures is a matter of critical and growing need.