Electronic Discovery and Evidence

Europe's Data Protection Day

DATA PROTECTION DAY - 28 JANUARY - An initiative of the Council of Europe with the support of the European Commission. "A 2003 Eurobarometer survey on the protection of privacy in the European Union showed that 70% of European citizens feel they know little about what is done in their country to protect their personal data. However, data protection issues are central in citizens’ lives: at work, in their relations with public authorities, in the health field, when they travel or surf the internet. The right to data protection is also the prerequisite for the exercise of other fundamental rights, such as the right to freedom of speech or conscience. Therefore, in 2007, for the first time, the Council of Europe celebrated the Data Protection Day on 28 January. This was the occasion for European citizens to become more aware of personal data protection and of what their rights and responsibilities are in that regard. . . . "

E-discovery Product Purchase Considerations

E-discovery product purchase considerations. "As data volumes grow, it's increasingly difficult to locate relevant data. Data must be retained longer, and storage users cannot be counted upon to intuitively locate documents, spreadsheets or other data. This is a problem when dealing with electronic discovery (e-discovery) requests that impose a legal obligation to locate relevant data in a timely manner or face fines and possibly adverse judgments. Today, e-discovery tools provide powerful search capabilities that can quickly process and index billions of files based on keywords and other common metadata. The tools can also present search results in forms that are easy to understand and often deliver results in a form that is directly compatible with litigation management tools. . . . "

E-Discovery Law Firm and Vendor Lawsuit

How a White Shoe Law Firm Disputes a Bill. "Electronic discovery, the phrase that refers to the mountains of electronic data that could land at issue in a corporate lawsuit, is now at the heart of one such suit for the first time.

For years, newly minted J.D.s at big law firms have complained about the mind-numbing task of staring at computer screens sorting through this data--all in an effort to get those 2,000 billable hours for their $160,000 salaries.

Meanwhile, the partners overseeing these cases fret over whether they have complied with new federal rules governing the responsibilities of lawyers for making sure that all electronic documents actually get to the opposing side.

But in nearly every case, law firms hire outside . . . "

Don't Forget the Text Messages

Text messages are shortcut for investigators in teacher-student cases. "Private text messages between lustful school teachers and their student paramours are undoing many furtive liaisons. Parents and police are discovering evidence of the illegal sexual activity through text messages, and prosecutors increasingly are using the messages sent via cell phones to win convictions.

"People think it's a much more secret form of communication," said Todd Stefan, executive vice president of a Los Angeles-based security company that provides electronic forensic services. "Often times, we see parents monitor their children's computer use, but cell phones often fall through the cracks."  Not always. . . . "

Discovery of Employee-Owned Computer Equipment

Discovery of Employee-Owned Computer Equipment.  "Whether they are large or small, businesses struggle with the question of whether discovery requests served on the company also extend to home computers, cell phones, and other equipment personally owned by employees of the company. In a time when many corporate e-mail systems offer web access and telecommuting is increasingly common, this is not a simple analysis. Courts, too, have struggled for some time to find consistent rules for resolving this issue, and this is one situation where the amended Federal Rules of Civil Procedure have not provided significant additional guidance. A number of simple tests, however, can often suggest how many requests should be resolved, both at the enterprise level and with respect to specific individuals? I. Has the personal equipment been used for business purpose . . ."