Not So eDiscovery e-Discovery Rules

Good Morning All,

As of late, I have been taking a keen interest in the development and nascent proliferation of eDiscovery "pilot programs" and other similar efforts, usually by courts, to standardize eDiscovery. So, when I saw an article put out by Thomson Reuters entitled "New York Implements new mandatory e-discovery rules" I was quite intrigued. However, upon reading the article I was quite disappointed and even shocked.

It turns out the article is all about New York state courts mandating that documents and pleadings in certain cases be filed with the court electronically. While I certainly applaud the courts of New York for their effort to go paperless, and Thomson Reuters for covering the topic, this is not an article about eDiscovery, regardless of what the title says.

Thomson Reuters' confusion did drive home a point for me. In this age of eDiscovery certifications, judges endorsing computer-assisted coding, and social media, a large part of the legal community, and an even greater portion of the community at large, have no idea what eDiscovery is, let alone utilize it.

While Judge Peck and others like him press forward at the forefront of the field, many practitioners have never used an electronic document review platform, still insist on reviewing documents in hard copy, or cling to any number of other antiquated discovery methods. The fact that Thomson Reuters, a respected news agency, could so easily misuse the term simply emphasizes this point; while the field of eDiscovery is making great strides and pushing forward, there are still many who do not know the basics and need to be educated. If we can somehow educate the majority of legal practitioners about eDiscovery, that, in my mind, may be a far greater and broader reaching achievement than computer-assisted coding currently is.

How will this be achieved? My answer is through those of us in the eDiscovery industry working to educate and initiate others. It will take time, but I am confident it can be done. So, I encourage all of you to take on that task, and the next time one of your colleagues asks for all the documents to be printed and put in a bankers box, take a moment to let them in on the secret that is eDiscovery.

If you would like to read the entire Thomson Reuters article please use this link: http://newsandinsight.thomsonreuters.com/New_York/News/2012/02_-_February/New_York_implements_new_mandatory_e-discovery_rules/