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Here’s an ACEDS Houston CLE Event You Can Attend No Matter Where You Are: eDiscovery Education

In a normal non-COVID-19 (coronavirus) world, our chapter events for the Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists (ACEDS) Houston chapter would in-person local events and probably limited to legal professionals in Houston and surrounding areas.  But, we must adapt in the current (hopefully temporary) world of “social distancing”.  As a result, here’s a CLE event that you can “attend”, even if you’re nowhere near Houston.

One week from today, on Thursday, April 2 at noon CST (1:00pm EST, 10:00am PST), ACEDS will host the webinar Mining for Valuable Data – Collection Fundamentals.  In this one-hour webcast that’s CLE-approved for 0.75 hours in Texas, Paul Price, Vice President of Forensic Services at Xact Data Discovery will discuss collection fundamentals including: the scope of collection; how data is stored and recovered; the importance of metadata, forensic soundness and chain of custody; the risks of self-collection and other available collection approaches; and major source categories to be considered.

Let’s face it: While the left side of the EDRM (Identify, Preserve, and Collect) may be the least expensive part of the eDiscovery process, it can hold the biggest value because improper collections can result in having to repeat the entire process increasing the client’s total cost; sanctions can occur if the data is no longer available; and unnecessary legal battles may ensue to defend the decisions that were made at the beginning of the case.  If you don’t have the time to do it right, when are you going to have the time to do it over?

You’re probably asking: If the webinar is CLE approved for 0.75 hours in Texas, how does that apply to me if I’m NOT in Texas?  Well, based on CloudNine’s experience in hosting our own webcasts, we know that several states (and even one territory) offer reciprocal credit for approved CLE webinars in other states.  Reciprocal credit may also be available in these states (and territory): Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin.  And, these are the states we have confirmed will provide CLE credit – other states may as well (check with your local state bar on requirements in your state).

To get CLE credit in Texas after the webinar, email your name and bar number to me at my email address – daustin@cloudnine.com – and (once I confirm your attendance for the full 0.75 hours) I can record your credit for you.  To get credit in another state, email me and (after confirming credit) I can send you a certificate so that you can pursue credit in your state.  What could be easier than that?!?

BTW, don’t forget CloudNine’s next webcast – Winning the Battle on Discovery Form of Production – with Tom O’Connor and me on Thursday, April 2 at noon CST (1:00pm EST, 10:00am PST).  That’s nearly 2 hours of new CLE courses in less than a week!

So, what do you think?  Are you looking for opportunities to obtain CLE credit during the pandemic?  Well, here’s one chance to do so!  Please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

Sponsor: This blog is sponsored by CloudNine, which is a data and legal discovery technology company with proven expertise in simplifying and automating the discovery of data for audits, investigations, and litigation. Used by legal and business customers worldwide including more than 50 of the top 250 Am Law firms and many of the world’s leading corporations, CloudNine’s eDiscovery automation software and services help customers gain insight and intelligence on electronic data.

Disclaimer: The views represented herein are exclusively the views of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views held by CloudNine. eDiscovery Daily is made available by CloudNine 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 Daily should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a lawyer you have retained and who has agreed to represent you.

Be a Gator for a Day in March and Learn About InfoGov in Houston This Month!: eDiscovery Trends

A two-topic day for us with a couple of terrific educational opportunities!  One free CLE educational program in Houston comes up in just ten days!  And, the other happens in Florida and currently has early bird pricing available for a wonderful full day conference in March!

ACEDS Houston Event

Our first event of the year in the Houston chapter of the Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists (ACEDS) is on Thursday, January 23rd from noon to 1:30pm CT at The Houston Club at 910 Louisiana Street, Suite 4900, Houston, TX 77002. Todd Brown and Lisa Cromwell of Access Sciences will be presenting Information Governance Essentials on that day.

This CLE educational* program will help you understand what Information Governance is and learn practical tips and best practices on applying Information Governance essentials to your Firm and Corporate practice, including a holistic approach to InfoGov and a 7-point InfoGov model!  With data in the world doubling every 1.2 years and data privacy considerations becoming vital due to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), Information Governance has become more important than ever, so join us on the 23rd!  You can register here through January 22.

University of Florida E-Discovery Conference

Believe it or not, this is the eighth year for the University of Florida E-Discovery Conference.  As usual, the panel of speakers is an absolute who’s who in eDiscovery (be a gator, get it?).  And, if you act quickly you can save big to attend!

The annual one-day conference will be held this year on Thursday, March 19th from 8:00am to 5:40pm ET.  This year, the focus is to show you how to work smarter, not harder to ensure the success of your project.  As you can always expect from the U-Fla conference, there are a veritable plethora of experts, including Craig Ball, George Socha, Tom O’Connor, Scott Milner, Kelly Twigger, Tessa Jacobs, David Horrigan, Canaan Himmelbaum, Suzanne Clark, Julie Brown, Mike Quartararo, and Ian Campbell.  And, a bunch of distinguished federal and state judges, including U.S. Magistrate Judges William Matthewman, Mac McCoy, Patricia Barksdale, and Gary Jones.  And, I’m honored to be participating for the third straight year as one of the presenters.  Do you like Jeopardy?  If so, you’ll want to catch our session – I’m going to be one of the “contestants” in “E-Discovery Jeopardy”.  Hopefully, I won’t be singing this song afterward!  ;o)

I’ll have more details on this conference as we get closer, but U-Fla is once again offering an “Early Bird Special” for the next week.  You can attend this day long conference packed with practical advice, experts, hot topics, and FL CLE for only $49 livestream or $69 in person!  After that, the price will go up to $99 for live streaming and $199 in person (still a bargain, but you can get it even cheaper if you act quickly).  Last year, the in-person slots were sold out, so that is another reason to act quickly.  You can register here for the conference.  Hope to see you there!

So, what do you think?  Are you looking for good eDiscovery education?  If so, consider checking these out!  Please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

Sponsor: This blog is sponsored by CloudNine, which is a data and legal discovery technology company with proven expertise in simplifying and automating the discovery of data for audits, investigations, and litigation. Used by legal and business customers worldwide including more than 50 of the top 250 Am Law firms and many of the world’s leading corporations, CloudNine’s eDiscovery automation software and services help customers gain insight and intelligence on electronic data.

Disclaimer: The views represented herein are exclusively the views of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views held by CloudNine. eDiscovery Daily is made available by CloudNine 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 Daily should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a lawyer you have retained and who has agreed to represent you.

ACEDS Announces its New Leadership: eDiscovery Trends

Ever since the BARBRI Group announced back in July that Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists (ACEDS) Executive Director Mary Mack and Vice President Client Engagement Kaylee Walstad were departing from their roles at the end of October, a lot of people in the eDiscovery community have been waiting to see who would take over leadership of ACEDS.  We now have our answer.

In an email to the ACEDS community on Monday, BARBRI Group Chairman and CEO Stephen Fredette announced that “Mike Quartararo, a long-time ACEDS member, former law firm eDiscovery director, author and community leader has joined us as President of ACEDS and Professional Development. Additionally, leading legal industry strategist, consultant and author, Ari Kaplan, will apply his talents on a consulting basis to help build a new ACEDS Global Advisory Board and act as Chairperson for that group.”

In making the announcement, Fredette indicated that “Mike will be assuming the responsibilities of executive director Mary Mack, continuing to build on the tremendous foundation she established, leading the global ACEDS community, growing and supporting the members and local chapters, and reinforcing the best-in-class reputation of the CEDS certification. Additionally, Mike will work to leverage BARBRI’s diverse suite of legal education talent and professional development resources to create new education solutions and certificate programs for ACEDS members and the legal community.”

Of course, many of you know that Mike was the Director of Litigation Support for Stroock, that prior to that he led eDiscovery projects at Skadden Arps and that he is the author the 2016 book Project Management in Electronic Discovery (which you can buy here).  You may not know that Mike has been a member of ACEDS since its founding, helped shape portions of the original CEDS exam, and is part of the inaugural class to take and pass the exam.  So, Mike is as qualified as anybody to continue to build on the great work that Mary and Kaylee have done in building the ACEDS brand over the past few years.

In addition, many of you know Ari Kaplan, of Ari Kaplan Advisors, who is an attorney, a leading legal industry analyst and an author of several books on the business of law. He is also the principal researcher for several well-known and widely distributed benchmarking reports, is a frequent writer and speaker, and is the founder of Lawcountability, a business development platform for lawyers and law firms.

Having worked with (and been on panels with) both Mike and Ari in the past, I can certainly say that ACEDS has made great selections to keep the positive momentum going that Mary and Kaylee started.

So, what do you think?  Will this announcement mean good things for ACEDS and for the eDiscovery community?  Please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

Sponsor: This blog is sponsored by CloudNine, which is a data and legal discovery technology company with proven expertise in simplifying and automating the discovery of data for audits, investigations, and litigation. Used by legal and business customers worldwide including more than 50 of the top 250 Am Law firms and many of the world’s leading corporations, CloudNine’s eDiscovery automation software and services help customers gain insight and intelligence on electronic data.

Disclaimer: The views represented herein are exclusively the views of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views held by CloudNine. eDiscovery Daily is made available by CloudNine 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 Daily should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a lawyer you have retained and who has agreed to represent you.

The Houston Legal Technology Showcase and Conference is Less Than a Month Away: eDiscovery Best Practices

It’s officially a tradition now!  The Third Annual Women in eDiscovery (WiE) Houston Chapter, Legal Technology Showcase and Conference will be held on Thursday, September 26th in downtown Houston!

WiE Houston, once again in partnership with South Texas College of Law and the Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists (ACEDS), will be hosting the conference on that day.  The one-day technology showcase will bring together legal thought leadership, innovative technology providers, practitioners, legal support staff and law school students in one venue to network and collaborate on current legal industry trends and innovative technology products.

Thanks to South Texas College of Law, ACEDS, conference sponsors and technology exhibitors, the event is free(!) to attend and open to all professionals within the legal industry including attorneys, litigation support and legal operations professionals, paralegals, legal IT staff, court reporters, consultants, recruiters and vendors.

The conference will feature several educational sessions (CLE credit pending) led by industry experts and thought leaders along with a full day of technology exhibits from leading legal technology providers. The agenda and speakers will be updated as they are finalized. The event agenda includes a continental breakfast, welcome keynote, 3 educational sessions, lunch, all day exhibitions, and a post-event happy hour.  The current agenda and list of speakers for the conference are available here.

Attendees will also once again have the opportunity to enter in a drawing to win a CEDS scholarship courtesy of ACEDS.  CloudNine is once again a Sponsor for the event (as well as an Exhibitor, so you can come learn about us too).

The conference runs from 8:30am to 5:15pm, with a networking happy hour from 5:15pm to 7:15pm.  Both events are at South Texas College of Law in downtown Houston.  If you’re in Houston (or could be on that day), click here to register for the event.  Based on turnout the first two years, it’s going to be BIG, so register early to save your spot!

So, what do you think?  Are you going to be in Houston on September 26th?  If so, register to enjoy free eDiscovery education and a chance to network with your colleagues!  Please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

Sponsor: This blog is sponsored by CloudNine, which is a data and legal discovery technology company with proven expertise in simplifying and automating the discovery of data for audits, investigations, and litigation. Used by legal and business customers worldwide including more than 50 of the top 250 Am Law firms and many of the world’s leading corporations, CloudNine’s eDiscovery automation software and services help customers gain insight and intelligence on electronic data.

Disclaimer: The views represented herein are exclusively the views of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views held by CloudNine. eDiscovery Daily is made available by CloudNine 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 Daily should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a lawyer you have retained and who has agreed to represent you.

Having the Right Technology is Only One Piece of the Puzzle: eDiscovery Trends

We all get the eDiscovery technology is changing – in large part because the demands of eDiscovery are changing.  Amazingly enough though, it’s not just about the technology – as a recent article discusses, it’s as much about the training on how to use the technology as it is about the capabilities of the technology itself.

In Corporate Counsel (A Journey of Self E-Discovery, written by Frank Ready), the author speaks with several eDiscovery and technology experts regarding the needs and challenges of selecting eDiscovery providers and training on eDiscovery tools.  For example, Debbie Reynolds, data privacy officer at Eimer Stahl, describes the process of evaluating contracts with eDiscovery providers as a pendulum, a process by which every few years firms take a look at their ongoing budgets and expenditures to reevaluate whether or not they would be better served by bringing eDiscovery process in-house.

“About every three years you can kind of reconsider, ‘Are we doing the right thing? Are we looking at the right software? Do we have the right staffing?’” Reynolds says.

Investing in an array of high-powered eDiscovery tech and software is all well and good, but putting it into the hands of an untrained staff is still akin to tossing a set of Porsche keys to someone who slept through the entirety of drivers ed. As David Hasman, litigation support manager at Bricker & Eckler, says, “The reality of it is that if you don’t have talent to drive that technology, that technology is useless.”

“Really, the biggest spend from a client’s perspective when you’re facing litigation is typically the discovery. … You as a lawyer better be able to talk to your client and educate them on the process, why it’s important and the costs associated with it,” explains Joseph Tate, director of eDiscovery and practice advisory services at Cozen O’Connor.

To be sure, corporate legal departments aren’t immune to the whims of foot-dragging folks either. George Socha, co-founder of EDRM and a managing director in BDO’s forensic technology services practice, pointed out that some companies have never had a reason to focus on eDiscovery. Still, a sudden spike in litigation can force their hand.

But necessity does not always translate to enthusiasm, at least in the eyes of some of the companies that Socha has spoken to about starting down the eDiscovery path. “Their response is, ‘You’ve got to be kidding? This is what’s going on? This is insane,’” Socha says.

But, as we have all heard before, insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, hoping for a different result.  As Tom O’Connor and I discussed in our April webcast (Discovery Isn’t Just for Litigation Anymore), growing data privacy concerns with the General Data Privacy Regulation (GDPR) and California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and increase in harassment claims with #MeToo and rising corporate malfeasance concerns have led to a lot of potential compliance and investigations needs with regard to discovery that organizations have today whether or not they ever lead to litigation.  In short, most organizations are likely to have some need today regarding eDiscovery, even if they never have any litigation.  As a result, more organizations than ever will not only have a need for eDiscovery technology, they will also have a need for training: training to not only understand how to get the most out of the technology, but also training on best practices regarding eDiscovery in general.  This means an increased emphasis on certifications like the Certified E-Discovery Specialist (CEDS) Certification from ACEDS, as well as trainings and certifications on the eDiscovery technology itself.

That’s one of the many things great about our industry – there’s always a lot of new things to learn!

So, what do you think?  How does your organization address technology and best practice training needs?  As always, please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

Sponsor: This blog is sponsored by CloudNine, which is a data and legal discovery technology company with proven expertise in simplifying and automating the discovery of data for audits, investigations, and litigation. Used by legal and business customers worldwide including more than 50 of the top 250 Am Law firms and many of the world’s leading corporations, CloudNine’s eDiscovery automation software and services help customers gain insight and intelligence on electronic data.

Disclaimer: The views represented herein are exclusively the views of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views held by CloudNine. eDiscovery Daily is made available by CloudNine 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 Daily should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a lawyer you have retained and who has agreed to represent you.

Survey Says! Results of the ACEDS Community Survey: eDiscovery Trends

As part of its focus on offerings and opportunities that impact certifications, careers, contacts, and competence, the Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists (ACEDS) recently conducted one of the more comprehensive online surveys of individuals currently working in the field of the eDiscovery that I’ve seen in a long time.  So, what were some of the findings?  Let’s take a look.

ACEDS posted Nineteen Observations on ACEDS in the Summer of 2019, written by Rob Robinson, editor of the excellent Complex Discovery blog and probably the unofficial survey king of eDiscovery.  Rob posted those same observations on his blog here.

Notably, the survey was open between May 15, 2019, and June 3, 2019. The survey was conducted by an outsourced and primary research firm, Hanover Research, and was designed to provide insight into survey areas through the responses to approximately 250 questions(!) organized around six general ACEDS-related topics.  Of those receiving invitations to participate, 149 eDiscovery professionals completed all 250 questions (I was one of those – kudos to ACEDS for generating so many responses to such a long survey). Partial responses to the survey were not tabulated as part of the survey results, and the reward for full survey completion was $20 directed by respondents to one of three charities.

Here are a few of the observations from the survey:

  • 93% of ACEDS Community Survey respondents were aware of the Certified E-Discovery Specialist (CEDS) certification, with 80% of these respondents being very familiar or extremely familiar with the CEDS certification.
  • The ACEDS Blog was noted as a primary source of legal news and thought leadership information by 79% of survey respondents.
  • Unsurprisingly given the target audience of the survey, 75% of respondents shared that they were current members of ACEDS. Additionally, 35% of respondents noted Women in eDiscovery (WiE) as the most common non-ACEDS membership to possess among presented legal industry groups.
  • 84% of respondents shared that they have a positive impression of ACEDS, and one-third of respondents noted that the reason for the positive impression was ACEDS educational content and certification course materials.
  • In considering the frequency respondents use skills acquired from certifications in their work, security-related certifications appeared to be the most utilized certification skills with 91% of respondents with security-related certifications reporting that they always use the skills related to that certification in their work. Also, 58% of respondent CEDS certificate holders noted that they always use CEDS-related skills in their work.
  • Only 7% of respondents shared that eDiscovery was taught as part of their law school or paralegal school curriculum. With just under two-thirds of that teaching (64%) being teaching as part of a course dedicated to eDiscovery.
  • 89% of ACEDS Community Survey respondents reported an increase in compensation during the last five years and 77% reported an increase in job offers.
  • 69% of survey respondents attended at least one industry professional development conference during the past year, with LegalTech NY, Relativity Fest, and ILTACON being the most attended conferences. 32% of respondents noted attending LegalTech NY, 24% of respondents noted attending Relativity Fest (Chicago or London), and 20% of respondents noted attending ILTACON.

These are just a few of the published results, check out the article for more.  Also, speaking of surveys, Rob launched the Summer 2019 eDiscovery Business Confidence Survey over the weekend, so you can participate in that one too.  I’ll cover the results of it in a few weeks as I have the previous surveys over the past 3+ years.

So, what do you think?  Are you surprised by any of the ACEDS survey results?  As always, please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

eDiscovery Daily will return next Monday.  Happy Independence Day!

Sponsor: This blog is sponsored by CloudNine, which is a data and legal discovery technology company with proven expertise in simplifying and automating the discovery of data for audits, investigations, and litigation. Used by legal and business customers worldwide including more than 50 of the top 250 Am Law firms and many of the world’s leading corporations, CloudNine’s eDiscovery automation software and services help customers gain insight and intelligence on electronic data.

Disclaimer: The views represented herein are exclusively the views of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views held by CloudNine. eDiscovery Daily is made available by CloudNine 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 Daily should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a lawyer you have retained and who has agreed to represent you.

ACEDS Shows Why You Need Those Stinking Badges: eDiscovery Trends

If you love classic comedy movies like me, you probably love the classic Mel Brooks comedy Blazing Saddles.  My favorite quote from that movie is when the bandido says “Badges?  We don’t need no stinking badges!”  Well, the Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists (ACEDS) is showing that you do, in fact, need those stinking badges to prove you’re CEDS certified.

According to Legaltech News (ACEDS New Digital Badge Aims to End E-Discovery Credential Fraud, written by Frank Ready), ACEDS has released a new digital badge that members can post to social media platforms, signature lines or LinkedIn to make it easier to  have their credentials validated with a single click to their social media pages, online résumé or signature line and prevent fraud.

ACEDS created the badge in partnership with credentials solutions developer Credly Acclaim. It was developed as a tool that could be used to prevent fraud or remind people that their certifications won’t renew themselves.

“We’ve had feedback from people who were concerned perhaps that some folks were putting initials after their names or keeping initials after their names even if they hadn’t re-certified,” Mary Mack, ACEDS executive director, said. “You just sort of forget that you have to re-certify. We communicate via email, and these days it’s really hard to get through spam filters. People move jobs, and so they may not even know that their certification is expired,” Mack said.

As of two weeks ago, it’s now available to members holding ACEDS’ Certified E-Discovery Specialist (CEDS) credential. The badge can be posted to Facebook, LinkedIn or inside an email, where a single click will redirect users to a secure third party site maintained by ACEDS.

“Certainly, it would probably save a step for a reference check. Or if you were checking people’s credentials, you’d be able to just press on the badge, and then you would see when the candidate certified and if they were still in good standing,” Mack said.

The other side of the employment equation also stands to benefit. Job candidates on the prowl can use the badge to check the status of their own certification and receive instructions on how to re-qualify.

Bandidos, you do need those stinking badges after all (at least if you want to prove you’re certified).

By the way, with regard to the Blazing Saddles quote, that’s not where the quote originated on film or TV, click on a previous blog post here (and scroll to the bottom) to find out where the exact quote originally appeared.  You may be surprised! :o)

So, what do you think?  Are you more likely to hire someone with a CEDS certification for eDiscovery jobs?  As always, please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

Image Copyright © Warner Bros. Inc.

Sponsor: This blog is sponsored by CloudNine, which is a data and legal discovery technology company with proven expertise in simplifying and automating the discovery of data for audits, investigations, and litigation. Used by legal and business customers worldwide including more than 50 of the top 250 Am Law firms and many of the world’s leading corporations, CloudNine’s eDiscovery automation software and services help customers gain insight and intelligence on electronic data.

Disclaimer: The views represented herein are exclusively the views of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views held by CloudNine. eDiscovery Daily is made available by CloudNine 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 Daily should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a lawyer you have retained and who has agreed to represent you.