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Features

e-Discovery Techniques For Filtering Responsive Data

Brian Larsen

As most e-discovery vendors will happily tell you, 99% of all new business information is being created and stored electronically, and an estimated 60 billion e-mail messages are sent daily in the U.S. Sifting through all this data in a meaningful manner requires strategic thinking. On one hand, parties have an obligation ' and courts have created incentives ' to be fully forthcoming on electronic discovery requests. On the other hand, processing and reviewing data collected from hundreds of desktops and servers can become very expensive. During the e-discovery search process, even the most strategic keyword selections can leave a lot to be desired. Even case-specific terms may generate a lot of hits, but it may also produce more false positives than relevant material. Creating a strategic plan for data filtering through a well-researched selection of keywords and file types helps to ensure efficiencies in cost, time and resources, while generating fully forthcoming materials.

Data Mapping: The Common Thread Between Litigation Preparedness and Data Security

Wayne Wong

In today's world, most business activity creates electronically stored information ('ESI') ' whether it's an e-mail, document, voice-mail or database transaction ' and the exponentially increasing volume and diversity of those digital files at corporations represents exponentially increasing corporate risk. However, according to a survey of corporate counsel attorneys, only 7% of them rate their companies as prepared for the electronic discovery amendments to the FRCP. This lack of preparedness is not surprising since, until recently, many in-house legal departments have taken a back seat and let outside counsel manage their discovery needs.

Cyberinsurance for Data Security Risks

Ed Poll

The harms that can result from computer security breaches are largely uncovered by the types of insurance policies most law firms maintain. Combined with the inadequate security most law firms provide for client data, the resultant risk exposure arguably violates legal professional ethics. A firm's failure to adequately protect computer-based master files, time-and-billing records, court filings, wills, powers of attorney, corporate records, and other client-related materials is a violation of bar association requirements to preserve client files and more generally a failure in the firm's overall duty to act competently in the best interests of its clients.

Third Circuit Upholds FCC's Deregulation of High-Speed Internet Access

Shannon P. Duffy

In a victory for big telephone companies, a federal appeals court has upheld a ruling by the FCC that effectively deregulated high-speed Internet access service provided over traditional telephone lines.

Features

<b>BREAKING NEWS:</b> RIAA Wins File-Sharing Suit

Steven Salkin

A Minnesota woman was found guilty oif illegally downloading music onto her computer -- to the tune of $222,000, a jury decided in federal court in Duluth on Oct. 4.

Features

Detailed Billing

Zusha Elinson

Today's bills are as thick as case files, and at least as detailed. Concerned over what lawyers are doing with their time and who's working on a matter ' whether to track diversity or to keep expensive but inexperienced first-year associates off the case ' clients demand exhaustive accounting from their outside counsel.

Cyberinsurance for Data Security Risks

Ed Poll

The harms that can result from computer security breaches are largely uncovered by the types of insurance policies most law firms maintain. Combined with the inadequate security most law firms provide for client data, the resultant risk exposure arguably violates legal professional ethics. A firm's failure to adequately protect computer-based master files, time-and-billing records, court filings, wills, powers of attorney, corporate records, and other client-related materials is a violation of bar association requirements to preserve client files and more generally a failure in the firm's overall duty to act competently in the best interests of its clients.

Features

Normalizing Mix Variables in Financial Data

Ron Paquette

Most law firm managers understand the importance that business analysis plays in steering a firm toward success. However, as with so many things in life, a little bit of analysis can be a dangerous thing. Management reporting processes typically collect, organize, and ultimately combine data sets from different practice areas, offices, industries, etc. Superficial reports compare aggregate characteristics (<i>e.g.</i>, top-line results) without identifying the varying components contained within the data sets and normalizing for these variables. This can lead those who examine such reports to draw misleading or even totally wrong conclusions.

Features

How Widespread Is Unethical Billing?

William G. Ross

Aside from a few sensational disbarments and criminal prosecutions for overbilling, most evidence of billing irregularities is anecdotal. In order to provide a more precise assessment of the scope of the abuse of time-based billing by attorneys, I conducted nationwide surveys of outside counsel in 1991, 1995, and 2007. The large majority of respondents to all three surveys ' 82% in the most recent survey ' indicated that time-based billing was their dominant method of billing.

Products As Witnesses

Michael Hoenig

Because of the importance of the 'crown jewels,' litigants should be assiduous in trying to locate and preserve the accident-involved product and in trying to assure the integrity of its custody and condition from the time of the accident. Indeed, a failure to do so can result in spoliation-of-evidence sanctions.

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