866-448-5871
A new generation of eDiscovery software products is stirring excitement as we’re discovering the enormous untapped potential of advanced visual analytics in the eDiscovery workflow.
“The use of analytics in e-discovery is not new; indeed, in some ways, it’s as old as the discipline of electronic discovery itself,” writes Steve Ashbacher, vice president of litigation solutions at LexisNexis, in a recent issue of Legaltech News. “However, the use of data analytics in the e-discovery workflow has begun to gain acceptance as these tools become more frequently used in strategic ways and at various times throughout the workflow. Moreover, as these tools become easier for attorneys to use, their adoption will accelerate.”
Ashbacher notes that “we’re on the precipice of the creation of a new generation of e-discovery software products” that may take the use of analytics to a higher level of use than we previously imagined.
In his Legaltech News article, Ashbacher identifies five ways that analytics can help drive better litigation outcomes:
- Better define outcomes – “litigation teams (can) get a clearer look at a more manageable data set, enabling them to quickly see the case issues and better define the range of possible outcomes for the client to assess.”
- Gain more efficiency – “dramatic efficiencies during the review of electronic documents . . . results in lower costs to the client across-the-board, but most notably in the review phase, which accounts for roughly 70 percent of e-discovery expenses.”
- Obtain greater control – “litigators can use analytics to literally track the progress of an e-discovery project, even if there are third-party reviewers involved, so they make sure to remain compliant with judicial instructions. This visual tracking translates to greater control and reduced risk.”
- Smarter case decisions – “the more information that lawyers have regarding the size and risk associated with litigation, the more likely the team will be making the best decisions about how to proceed in the case.”
- Greater predictability – “since analytics are fueled by the actual underlying documents pertinent to the case in question, they help to reduce guesswork by the attorneys and make the case preparation more predictable.”
Ashbacher argues that the brewing analytics revolution offers the potential for both in-house and outside counsel to gain earlier and deeper insights into a case, translating into not only greater efficiency and lower costs, but also improved risk management and case strategy.
“That is the formula for a new frontier worth exploring,” he writes.
* * *
This post is by Daryn Teague, who provides support to the litigation software product line based in the LexisNexis Raleigh Technology Center.