Three Models of eDiscovery Review (1, 2)
Within the context of data and legal eDiscovery, the task of review consists of the evaluation of digital information to identify relevant and responsive documents to produce, and privileged documents or confidential or sensitive information to withhold. This important eDiscovery task represents a significant portion of the total worldwide spend on eDiscovery and was projected to consume approximately 68% ($8.61B) of all worldwide eDiscovery software and services spending in 2020.
There are generally three models for the delivery of eDiscovery review services including:
- Remote Review Model (Diversification of Reviewers)
- On-Premise Review Model (Diversification of Review Centers)
- Hybrid On-Premise and Remote Review Model (Distributed Diversification)
Each model may be appropriate for different eDiscovery business continuity situations, with the best balance of safety, security, effectiveness, and economic value appearing to be the remote review model when implemented through a secure remote review infrastructure.
A Short Definition and Description of Secure Remote Review (3, 4)
A secure remote review is the conduct of a legal document review project with virtual teams operating from remote locations and supported by a secure infrastructure. When properly implemented by a proven and experienced provider, this approach to review may increase the quality and speed of reviews while removing many of the safety risks associated with group gatherings. It also, in many cases, can be delivered at lower costs than traditional on-premise reviews.
Not all secure remote review offerings are equal as the apparent experience a provider has in delivering and supporting secure remote review services, when viewed through the veil of branding or the halo effect of other eDiscovery offerings, may vary greatly from the reality of actual provider experience. Said differently, just because a provider has had success in delivering legal document review services and now has introduced a secure remote review capability, it does not mean the provider is experienced in providing secure remote review services. This point is incredibly salient as remote technology and connectivity infrastructure can be scaled almost immediately by eDiscovery providers. However, eDiscovery providers cannot instantly scale their experience in delivering secure remote review services. As data and legal discovery professionals consider recent announcements regarding secure remote review services, they may benefit from a structured evaluation of a provider’s experience before selecting a provider to support important legal document review projects.
A Structured Evaluation of Provider Experience (5)
General questions that may help clarify a provider’s experience and expertise with remote secure review services include but are not limited to:
- How long have you offered secure remote review services?
- How many secure remote review projects have you completed?
- How many of your reviewers and review managers have participated in a secure remote review project?
- How many of your reviewers and review managers have participated in a training and certification program for secure remote review projects?
- Is the secure remote review service you are offering organic to the organization or delivered through a partnership?
Areas of experience that should be evaluated when selecting secure remote review service providers include:
- Experience with remote technology
- Experience with remote security
- Experience with remote teams
- Experience with remote processes
- Experience with remote communications
- Experience with remote troubleshooting
Additionally, in looking through the lens of the six aforementioned areas of experience, it is essential to understand and evaluate a provider’s collective level of experience in delivering secure remote review services, including:
- Experience of the organization with remote services
- Experience of management teams with remote services
- Experience of individuals with remote services
A provider’s collective level of secure remote review experience may be a key indicator of the true depth and breadth of their complete secure remote review capability. The deeper the collective experience, the higher the probability of integrated, optimized, and proven processes and procedures for supporting core tasks (e.g., review, review management, and review metrics), as well as enabling tasks (e.g., staffing, training, certification, billing, continuing education).
Careful and courteous questioning of secure remote review service providers on their specific areas and levels of experience may mean the difference between streamlined success or subsidized learning (by the secure remote review provider) during the implementation and execution of secure remote reviews.
Notes
(1) Robinson, Rob. “A 2020 Look at eDiscovery Review: Task, Spend, and Cost Data Points”. ComplexDiscovery, 2020, https://complexdiscovery.com/a-2020- look-at-ediscovery-review-task-spend-and-cost-data-points/. Accessed 31 Mar 2020.
(2) “eDiscovery Business Continuity Planning With HaystackID”. HaystackID, 2020, https://haystackid.com/ediscovery-business-continuity-planning-with- haystackid/. Accessed 31 Mar 2020.
(3) Ibid.
(4) Robinson, Rob. “Enabling Remote eDiscovery? A Snapshot of
DaaS”. ComplexDiscovery, 2020, https://complexdiscovery.com/extending-the- reach-of-ediscovery-a-snapshot-of-daas/. Accessed 31 Mar 2020.
(5) Robinson, Rob. “Are You Experienced? Considering Remote Ediscovery Services”. ComplexDiscovery, 2020, https://complexdiscovery.com/are-you- experienced-considering-remote-ediscovery-services/. Accessed 31 Mar 2020.
