eDiscovery Preparedness – Custodian Interviews

T. James Cass

Manager, Review Services and Senior Counsel

July 7, 2021

Custodian interviews are an important and necessary part of the identification phase of an eDiscovery project. Early interviews are necessary to develop a proportionate and defensible discovery plan.

The purpose of the interview is to:

identify the cast of characters,
the relevant time periods,
the potential sources of electronically stored information (ESI), and
confirm that the individuals understand the legal hold requirements.

If custodian interviews are not done there is a risk that the relevant information won’t be preserved and collected or conversely that too much data is preserved and collected. … Read More

eDiscovery Preparedness – Discovery Planning

Candice Chan-Glasgow

Director, Review Services and Counsel

June 22, 2021

Previous blog posts have discussed document management systems and provided some tips that can be implemented prior to a dispute or investigation, such as the creation of a Data Map at the outset of an eDiscovery project. This article focuses on discovery planning and agreements with opposing parties on the scope and nature of the eDiscovery process and exchange of data. During this phase, the parties and respective counsel must work with their document management systems used and the data that is available from all relevant sources.

Discovery planning allows parties to discuss and obtain disclosure of information needed to identify any document issues early in the process. … Read More

eDiscovery Preparedness – Data Mapping

T. James Cass

Manager, Review Services and Senior Counsel

June 17, 2021

Once a dispute has arisen your enterprise will be required to preserve and produce records relevant to the issues in the dispute. This is referred to as the “Identification” phase of an eDiscovery project. As part of this phase, you need to identify the location of potentially relevant data. The identification phase involves understanding the location and nature of the data, and the people involved. This article will address the location and nature of the data, also referred to as a “Data Map”.

A Data Map is required to maintain appropriate records of the project and will assist in creating a defensible and most efficient preservation and collection plan.… Read More

eDiscovery Preparedness – Document Management Systems

Candice Chan-Glasgow, Director, Review Services and Counsel

June 8, 2021

An initial step for any business entity looking to proactively manage costs through the eDiscovery process is to re-examine its document management system (DMS).

A DMS is a system used to store, manage, and track electronic documents. The general benefits of an effective DMS have been touted for years – a DMS offers enhanced security and employees spend less time searching for information while losing less time to versioning issues. While these are all important considerations, a crucial perspective that is often overlooked is the eDiscovery aspect.… Read More

Federal Government Redaction Blunder Makes Headlines

Candice Chan-Glasgow, Director, Review Services and Counsel

March 15, 2021

A recent CBC news article highlights the Federal Government’s failure to properly redact sensitive information. This follows some high profile redaction failures south of the border, most notably when Paul Manafort’s lawyers failed to properly redact sensitive and damaging information in documents filed with the Federal Court.

Proper redaction tools and workflows should be used to ensure privileged or sensitive information is appropriately redacted. As a gentle reminder, The Federation of Law Societies of Canada amended its Model Code of Professional Conduct in October 2019 to include commentary on technological competence:

[4A] To maintain the required level of competence, a lawyer should develop an understanding of, and ability to use, technology relevant to the nature and area of the lawyer’s practice and responsibilities. … Read More