One of the most time-consuming and expensive phases of a lawsuit is the discovery phase.  Responding to a document request can mean sifting through thousands of pieces of paper.  The commonplace use of electronic records ups the discovery ante even further. An organization that is ill-prepared for e-discovery may find itself not only embroiled in the nitty-gritty of locating and reviewing tens of thousands of e-documents in the midst of a legal battle but also facing possible sanctions if the court's rules on e-discovery are not followed.

A survey conducted by Deloitte FAS of 520 chief executive officers revealed that 17.5 % of the executives responded that their companies are not prepared to handle complex discovery requests.  Nearly half of those CEOs surveyed expressed concern over the expense of sorting through large volumes of files in regard to an e-discovery request.

The best way to avoid handling an e-discovery request on the fly is to be proactive.  Creating document retention policies and procedures, including those designed to address e-discovery, is a good start.  Focusing on document management prior to a conflict will save a great deal of time and money in the long run.  For more information on the survey results, go here.

For more information about legislation or litigation involving technology, intellectual property protection of information technology assets or any other Information Technology law issue, contact your Miller Canfield attorney or Kathy Ossian, Leader of our Information Technology Team, or call her direct at 313.496.7644.