The NZ E-Discovery Blog  Facilitating proportionate and efficient e-discovery

Blog Archives

Reviewing Email Chains

July 24th, 2024

Email has dramatically transformed how we communicate, but emails, or more precisely the never-ending email chains/threads can still cause many issues in the discovery process. It does surprise me there can still be confusion around email chains. In some ways, emails were yesterday’s challenge as we now have so many different sources of information as […]

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Proactive, targeted and earlier

June 18th, 2024

Repeatedly, I encounter many with good intentions who leave practical discovery considerations until it’s too late. Let’s not tinker around the edges, we need to make real change. We need to be a lot more targeted to just get the information we need. To achieve this means we need to focus on the practical eDiscovery […]

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Proportionality – Be prepared to back it up

April 16th, 2024

Too often the claim of “proportionality” is an easy ‘out’ to evade potential discovery obligations. Common justifications include: Overwhelming number of documents Too much work required Claiming costs are disproportionate Relying on the court to accept the claim of proportionality While these points might hold merit, substantiating the proportionality argument becomes crucial, as discovery costs […]

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Who is your eDiscovery champion?

April 20th, 2022

With the proliferation of electronic information, it is important to be prepared to be pro-active earlier in the proceeding to address how discovery will be tackled. It is a great advantage to have an ‘eDiscovery champion’ in your organisation. Gone are the days where the discovery logistics were passed to a junior team member. Sure, this […]

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Improving the effectiveness of keyword search terms

November 11th, 2021

As I mentioned previously, keyword search terms still can be an effective method of isolating important information, but they do have limitations and need to be carefully crafted. If they are not, then they will not find what you are searching for. Anyone that has read any of my material or heard me speak will […]

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“Simplifying Discovery Obligations” – Starts with more robust case management

October 21st, 2021

In New Zealand there has been a recent Consultation process about Improving Access to Civil Justice. This is a positive step as we would all acknowledge there is work to do here in simplifying eDiscovery obligations. As part of these discussions, somewhat inevitably is evaluating the role of discovery and the potential reform of discovery […]

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Myth 4 – eDiscovery is too costly and complicated

May 26th, 2021

Too often I hear “eDiscovery is too costly, complex and frustrating”. Ironically this is the rationale of why many do not embrace eDiscovery software or invest the time at the outset of the matter. But it does not have to be this way. As I often say, eDiscovery is not expensive – eDiscovery done badly […]

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Myth 3 – The matter is too late for eDiscovery software

May 19th, 2021

Far too often parties turn their minds to the practical requirements of discovery far too late in the process, including if they are to use E-Discovery software. It is not unusual for lawyers to consider eDiscovery only when they are about to (or want to) turn documents into an electronic format to comply with court […]

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Go hard, and go even earlier…

March 16th, 2021

Last year I highlighted the importance of going hard and early in how the discovery process is approached. I mentioned in my post that this sounds obvious, but it is evident that I should articulate that this should be even earlier than most would think. Again and again, I work with or hear those with […]

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Go hard, go early…

November 18th, 2020

Just as with New Zealand’s exceptional response to COVID-19 (to date…), ‘go hard, go early’ also applies to eDiscovery. We all want to reduce the cost of E-Discovery. As I often say, eDiscovery is not expensive – eDiscovery done badly is ! To do this we need to turn our mind to the practical discovery […]

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Using the discovery exchange format that works for you

February 26th, 2020

Since 2012, New Zealand High Court discovery rules require parties to address the discovery checklist prior to the first case management conference. Just as you will be considering the methods to limit discovery to what is reasonable and proportionate, the discovery checklist requires you to consider the eDiscovery exchange format – the format that works best […]

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That is how our client provided the documents to us

January 30th, 2020

If we are to reduce the time and cost of the discovery process, then it is essential that how to tackle the practical requirements of discovery is considered at an early stage. One of these practical considerations should always be how documents are to be identified and how you will be collecting documents from your […]

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It may have worked in the past, but now…

July 17th, 2019

The rationale “We have always done discovery this way” no longer cuts it ! What may have worked 10 years ago, last year, or last week may no longer be the most effective way to manage the discovery process. In the past we did not face the volumes of electronic information that are now present […]

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Managing New Zealand’s increasing discovery volumes

June 12th, 2019

Like the rest of the world, there are increasing eDiscovery volumes in New Zealand, requiring smarter ways to manage this information. Recently LawTalk published an article of mine – “Effectively managing New Zealand’s increasing discovery volumes”. The article highlighted how important it is to effectively manage the increasing data volumes that exist in the discovery process. Increasing […]

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Embracing TAR to reduce the cost & burden of the discovery process

January 22nd, 2019

Due to increasing data volumes and the subsequent cost of managing this data require us to work smarter to find new ways that enable us to get to the most important information quickly and cost effectively. Technology Assisted Review (“TAR”) is one of these smarter ways. Needless to say it has simply become too expensive […]

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What do you want to achieve with your eDiscovery software?

March 28th, 2018

This is a question that is often over looked when exploring eDiscovery software. More frequently, I am simply asked – what is the best eDiscovery software? It is increasingly important to firstly, consider what you want to achieve. Considering the software options in many circumstances will be your final consideration Software should be your final consideration […]

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Read the Rules !

November 22nd, 2017

Leading eDiscovery commentator Chris Dale provided an excellent post this week about A proposed new disclosure rule for England and Wales. Chris makes an excellent observation that before there are rule changes, those involved in disclosure (or discovery for the rest of the world), should read the eDiscovery rules. I couldn’t agree more with Chris, […]

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Substantiating your proportionality argument

October 26th, 2017

The claim of “proportionality” is too often used as justification to shy away from potential discovery obligations. The following can frequently be used to justify this –   There are far too many documents The cost is not proportionate We can just claim proportionality to the court The discovery rules are on our side here […]

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Ensuring technology is used efficiently and effectively

September 27th, 2017

Sounds a given, or is it? In fact, it doesn’t always happen this way, and in some instances far from it. Most firms will be exploring how they can innovate, and a key driver of this innovation will be technology. The discovery process is no different. With the volumes and sources of information now present, […]

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Exploring Offshore Coding to List Documents

November 22nd, 2016

Since my last post, I have had many queries about LPO providers and offshore coding. I thought it might be helpful to explain how offshore coding works, together with why it should at least be an option to consider. Listing documents and managing paper may seem simple – it is not ! Leading eDiscovery Consultant […]

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Efficiently Managing Paper in eDiscovery

November 17th, 2016

As I highlighted in my last post, paper still exists in the discovery process, however it is important that we explore efficient ways of managing it. Regardless of whether paper is all you have or if you simply prefer to undertake discovery with paper, there are ways to do this more efficiently. If we don’t, […]

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The move to front-loading the discovery process

November 25th, 2015

The New Zealand High Court discovery rules require considerably more work in advance of the first case management conference (CMC). The benefit of this initial work is to assist in limiting the scope of discovery to what really matters and provide considerable value later in the discovery process. A recent article of mine published in […]

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Don’t wait until it is too late

October 13th, 2015

One of the most frequent requests I receive from lawyers is asking for assistance with their discovery. The conversation usually goes something like this – How can I help ? – We need assistance with our discovery. How much information do you have? – We have 5 boxes. Is the information available electronically? – I don’t know, I just asked […]

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Improving the application of keyword search terms

September 16th, 2015

Like it or not, keyword searching is still a very common method used in litigation or investigations to target potentially relevant information. For many lawyers the use of search terms is an approach that they are familiar and comfortable with. It is not hard to see why keywords are so comfortable, as we all use […]

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Getting rid of what you don’t want

July 22nd, 2015

It goes without saying that all discovery exercises now involve greater volumes of information than ever before. One of the consequences of this can be the problems with the considerable increase in the amount of irrelevant information there now is. It is also widely acknowledged that the review exercise in the eDiscovery process equates for about […]

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But, we have always done discovery this way…

June 16th, 2015

A common response I come across with new clients, when I ask why they carry out discovery in a particular way is usually we have always done it that way. And then in almost the same breath the response is “eDiscovery is expensive and time consuming”. What is expensive and time consuming is not eDiscovery, but […]

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There are just too many documents for us to review…

May 20th, 2015

Trying to limit discovery is important, and options like trying to establish a relevant date range and targeting who are the key individuals in the dispute will all help. However I still find parties trying to limit a discovery order, simply by arguing to the Court that there are so many documents that it will […]

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Highlights of the Legal and eDiscovery Stream

April 30th, 2015

In my last post, I provided an overview of New Zealand Law and Technology Conference, which was held in Auckland on the 18th of March. So let’s now look at some of the highlights from the Legal & eDiscovery Stream. eDiscovery 101 The conference kicked off with a breakfast workshop – eDiscovery 101 – Back […]

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Preview of the Legal and eDiscovery Stream

March 3rd, 2015

We are now just over two weeks away from the New Zealand Law and Technology Conference, taking place at the Pullman Hotel in Auckland on the 18th of March 2015. The event has pulled together an exciting new line-up of speakers across its newly expanded three talk streams. Leading Keynote Speakers Opening the conference again this year with […]

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Workshop provides a grounding on eDiscovery Basics

February 10th, 2015

We have designed an ‘eDiscovery 101 – Back to Basics’ workshop prior to the New Zealand Law and Technology Conference. The workshop has been tailored to provide the necessary grounding in the practical requirements of the eDiscovery process. The workshop will be an ideal starting point, or refresher session prior to exploring the wider issues […]

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EDT promote a fresh approach to eDiscovery

July 29th, 2014

Last week I facilitated the EDT lunch forum in Auckland that also launched their New Zealand eDiscovery hosting services. There was an excellent turnout with a mix of law firms, regulators and the presence of New Zealand’s leading technology Judge – His Honour Judge Harvey. Like the lunch forums EDT ran last year, this year […]

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EDT to host luncheon launching their New Zealand hosted solutions

July 14th, 2014

Leading legal software provider EDT is hosting a lunch in Auckland on the 24th of July, to announce its new hosted solutions for the New Zealand market and to present an Early Case Assessment (ECA) case study. The case study will show how law firms in the US have used EDT to provide lawyers with early […]

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Investing time developing a discovery strategy

June 11th, 2014

Today’s rapidly increasing data volumes require a greater investment in time planning ahead developing a discovery strategy, ensuring you and your client has a smoother and less expensive discovery process. LawTalk has recently published an article of mine The importance of investing time in developing a discovery strategy (A link to the article can be found here). The […]

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Reinforcing the requirements of the discovery checklist

August 29th, 2013

A discovery checklist was introduced as part of the new discovery rules that came into force in New Zealand in February 2012. Parties must now address a discovery checklist on all matters and then discuss the issues raised with the other parties to agree the scope and practical arrangements for conducting discovery. The checklist provides […]

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Lord Justice Jackson: “New Zealand is ahead of us”

December 1st, 2011

“New Zealand is ahead of us” maybe a commendable headline, but it is important to put Lord Justice Jackson’s comment into context. Lord Justice Jackson made this comment last week in a speech about ‘Controlling the Costs of Disclosure’. A full copy of the speech is available on the Judiciary of England and Wales website. […]

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NZ Law Society seminars: Judicial endorsement of new discovery rules

November 1st, 2011

I have spent the last week travelling the country presenting seminars on behalf of the New Zealand Law Society explaining the new discovery reforms. Laura O’Gorman of Buddle Findlay and David Friar of Bell Gully joined me in presenting these sessions, adding valuable legal insight into the new discovery rules. Judicial endorsement We were fortunate […]

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NZ E-Discovery reform – a global context: #4 – The effective use of technology

August 24th, 2011

There is a significant difference between merely using technology and using technology efficiently and effectively. Continuing my series of looking into the NZ discovery reforms, I will look at how the effective use of technology has been fundamental in comparative global discovery reforms. In addition to the new obligations of cooperation and proportionality in the […]

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