It’s no mystery to those working in the legal field that technology has had massive influence on the way law is practiced. The tedious performance of document review, in particular, has been revitalized by the use of eDiscovery, predictive coding, and Technology Assisted Review (TAR).
From Paper to Pixels
Since technology’s first use as a management system for large document collections in the 1970s, document review has evolved from paper only to “electronic to paper” to mostly digital. First, digital document review involved only the ability to catalogue documents by searchable bibliographies. Then, in the 1980s and ‘90s, whole-document scanning became more popular. Eventually, software allowed for full-text searches of these paper documents.
Now, paper is sometimes never involved at all, as eDiscovery methods can be used to find electronically stored information (ESI) within social media sites, for instance.
So What’s The Argument?
With too much of any good thing come a few caveats. It’s true that eDiscovery is changing the way document review is performed, but that doesn’t mean that the human touch can be eliminated entirely. With the advent of eDiscovery has come the need for individuals to review, manage, and analyze these records so that the client can make the best use of the discovered information.
While some might argue that eDiscovery is too difficult to learn or that the need for complete sentience is crucial in the performance of thorough document review, it is also well-argued that eDiscovery is absolutely critical to effectively practice law in today’s technology-driven society. Everything is electronic, and eDiscovery is what allows legal professionals to be sure they don’t miss a thing.
Finding A Perfect Balance
Blair Janis, a professor of legal technology at the Brigham Young University Law School, asserts that any lawyer’s key to success is finding the wisdom to know when technology can replace human practice and when it cannot.
When it comes to document review, Legal Outsourcing 2.0 strives to combine the best of humanity with the best of technology by utilizing the latest eDiscovery technology and managing the findings expertly with teams of trained document review professionals. Clients are encouraged to choose between three review approaches and are urged to maximally engage in the review process for the best results. If needs change, clients can switch to the model which best fits their newest goals.
For more information about how you can achieve the ultimate balance between human expertise and technological advantage, contact Legal Outsourcing 2.0 today to learn more about augmenting your next document review project.