This week’s blog post for IPRO’s blog is about eDiscovery competence and the fact that many of you said that we’re not talking about it enough. So, let’s talk about it!

One of the questions I asked in the recently released 2022 State of the Industry Report was “What do you think is the eDiscovery challenge that not enough people in the industry are talking about?” There were nine selections to choose from, plus an “Other” write-in option. With that many selections, you would think the results would be evenly distributed.

But it wasn’t. The top choice of survey respondents was “Lack of eDiscovery Competence within the Legal Profession” at 30%. The second most selected choice was “Discovery of Collaboration App Data” at 12.9%. It was the second year in a row that “Lack of eDiscovery Competence” was the top choice.

As you may know, lawyers have an ethical duty to competence as outlined by Rule 1.1: Competence from the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct. But it’s Comment 8 to Rule 1.1 that gets the most attention from legal tech and eDiscovery professionals.  It says (emphasis added):

[8]  To maintain the requisite knowledge and skill, a lawyer should keep abreast of changes in the law and its practice, including the benefits and risks associated with relevant technology, engage in continuing study and education and comply with all continuing legal education requirements to which the lawyer is subject.

So, lawyers have a duty to stay abreast of changes in technology, including eDiscovery technology. But how are we doing in enforcing that duty and what can we do to enforce it more? And what are three important technology areas to keep abreast of regarding eDiscovery technology? You can find out on IPRO’s blog here! Learn it, know it, live it! 😉

So, what do you think? Do you agree that we don’t talk about the lack of eDiscovery competence enough? Or are not enough people listening? Please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

Disclosure: IPRO is an Educational Partner and sponsor of eDiscovery Today

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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.