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Seamlessly Mastering Large-Scale Discovery Requests
A law firm representing a Fortune 100 corporation had recently struck a deal to acquire one of its major industry competitors. Upon receiving the notice of the merger under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a “Second Request,” demanding corporate data from more than 11 geographic locations, including several sites in Europe, South America and Asia. The requested data, derived from a total of 315 employees in the acquiring corporation, had been generated on a wide array of operating systems, e-mail packages and software applications. In addition, the firm had over 100 boxes of paper documents that needed to be incorporated into the production set. The firm anticipated a final document production totaling more than 7 million pages. To add to the complexity of the request, the whole collection, review and production could take only 10 to 12 weeks.
Most attorneys find discovery projects of this volume and magnitude a formidable task ' particularly when the stakes are high and production deadlines are tight. After all, many lawyers may not possess the technical prowess to understand the process and may feel uncertain about the best method for collecting, reviewing and producing volumes of electronic data. Adding to this daunting task is the requirement of addressing issues such as the handling of privileged information, e-mail and attachment production, metadata issues, and a host of other concerns. Whether practicing in a corporate environment or running a litigation practice, modern lawyers must prepare to handle discovery projects of all scopes and sizes. Failing to understand the special technical considerations involved with a large electronic-discovery project could leave a law firm and its client in hot water. After all, case law and newspaper headlines prove that courts and regulatory agencies expect practitioners and corporations to become technologically savvy or face sanctions in the form of hefty monetary fines or awards, adverse-inference instructions or even default judgments.
When faced with a massive discovery request ' in litigation or a regulatory investigation ' what steps should a law firm and its client take to make certain that all relevant documents are collected in a timely, precise and cost-effective manner? How can the firm guarantee a seamless discovery project without halting or disrupting the company's normal business processes? This article will offer strategies and ideas for legal professionals faced with a large-scale discovery project encompassing electronic and paper documents.
Major Differences In UK, U.S. Copyright Laws
This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.
The Article 8 Opt In
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
Strategy vs. Tactics: Two Sides of a Difficult Coin
With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks are targeting the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet. Understanding the strategy, and tactics of our opponents, as well as the strategy and the tactics we implement as a response are vital to victory.
Legal Possession: What Does It Mean?
Possession of real property is a matter of physical fact. Having the right or legal entitlement to possession is not "possession," possession is "the fact of having or holding property in one's power." That power means having physical dominion and control over the property.
The Anti-Assignment Override Provisions
UCC Sections 9406(d) and 9408(a) are one of the most powerful, yet least understood, sections of the Uniform Commercial Code. On their face, they appear to override anti-assignment provisions in agreements that would limit the grant of a security interest. But do these sections really work?