The definitive source for eDiscovery case law is about more than just case law!  The most recent blog post on eDiscovery Assistant (eDA) illustrates just that with the first post in a series about ESI Protocols.  It ties to a new section within the Checklists and Forms section within the eDA platform.

How important is the ESI Protocol?  As eDA notes at the beginning of the post:

“An ESI protocol is your roadmap to handling ESI issues in any litigation. Like any trip you take, the more planning you do, the less speed bumps you hit. In litigation, those speed bumps can include expensive and time consuming motion practice, failure to capture key evidence, waiving privilege on inadvertently produced materials, not being able to search data effectively, and not being able to understand the timeline or relationships of the data, among others. On average, we go back to the ESI protocol between 30-50 times in any litigation. Civil litigation is won and lost on the documents, and the ESI protocol is THE agreement that defines what documents you get and how.”

The post continues with a discussion of how and when you plan for an ESI protocol.  The “when” is simple: from the minute you start talking about a case.  The “how” involves at least eight main points to planning that evolve as your case evolves. There are a lot of useful points and best practices in the post, but I won’t spoil their thunder – you can check it out here.  In Part II, eDA will cover the key concepts to include in an ESI protocol and then start diving into each one to discuss the considerations and how the courts are interpreting the language of protocols.

There are currently 60(!) checklists and forms in eDA to help legal professionals manage eDiscovery more effectively – everything from an Affidavit of Legal Hold Administrator to What to Include in a BYOD Policy.  If you’re not a current user of eDA, you can still sign up for a FREE 30 day trial and check them out here.

So, what do you think?  How do you handle preparation of an ESI protocol?  Please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

Disclosure: eDiscovery Assistant is an Affinity Partner of eDiscovery Today

Disclaimer: The views represented herein are exclusively the views of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views held by my employer, my partners or my clients. eDiscovery Today is made available solely for educational purposes to provide general information about general eDiscovery principles and not to provide specific legal advice applicable to any particular circumstance. eDiscovery Today should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a lawyer you have retained and who has agreed to represent you.