A prior post (Keyword Searching – What is it? And How Do I Do It (Well)?) offered some tips for crafting effective search terms for use in the e-discovery process. Although those tips still hold true, today’s blog offers ways to utilize an ESI protocol to promote a more seamless electronic search process.*
An ESI protocol is
Continue Reading Cheat Sheet for Effective Search Terms
Employing search terms to identify documents relevant to a lawsuit is a commonly accepted practice. However, issues inevitably arise during the process of crafting search terms. For example, how are search terms agreed upon? What is the proper scope of search terms? Are the proposed terms appropriate for identifying different types of electronically stored information (“ESI”)? A decision out of
Continue Reading Courts Won’t Go “Where Angels Fear to Tread” When Deciding On Search Term Issues
Yikes! No practitioner wants to be on the receiving end of a decision that starts with the title of this post. And yet, that’s precisely how Magistrate Judge Bloom started her decision in Abbott Laboratories v. Adelphia Supply USA (15 cv 5826 [CBA] [LB]), ECF No. 1545 . Abbott serves as an important reminder to practitioners that we need to
Continue Reading A Cautionary Tale About How Not to Conduct Discovery in Federal Court
A key word search is a basic search technique that involves searching for one or more words within or across a collection of documents/files. Typically, the purpose of a key word search in a litigation is to limit the universe of potentially responsive data that one must process and review in order to prosecute/defend a lawsuit. (Note, this blog relates
Continue Reading Key Word Searching – What Is It? And How Do I Do It (Well)?
In Gardner v. Continental Cas. Co., (2016 WL 155002 [D. Conn. Jan. 13, 2016]), the District Court was called upon to decide two different issues raised by Plaintiffs in a motion to compel. The case itself concerned the long term care insurance coverage for five Connecticut residents for stays at Connecticut Managed Residential Care (“MRC”) facilities. As is
In Armstrong Pump, Inc. v. Hartman, No. 10-CV-446S, 2014 WL 6908867 (W.D.N.Y. Dec. 9, 2014), discovery in the breach of contract case was contentious, protracted and resulted in a multiple motions to compel, the first of which the court granted in favor of the defendant. At that time, the court warned the plaintiff “not to engage in piecemeal production
In today’s litigious world, discovery is costly and can be perilous. Exacerbating this landscape is the fact that sanctions are imposed for discovery violations more than any other litigation error. Not surprisingly, avoidable discovery mistakes lead to client dissatisfaction. Below are ten critical tips to avoid discovery sanctions and to remain compliant with discovery obligations.
Continue Reading E-Discovery Best Practices to Avoid Discovery Sanctions