We will be attending LegalTech New York and I wanted to invite you to come by and visit our booth. We will be in booth #429 on the 1st floor of the exhibit hall. There are several updates to our software applications that we will be demonstrating, and if you attend, I would appreciate the opportunity to meet with you.
I’ve been participating in LegalTech shows for more than ten years, and it’s a great way to see how computer forensics has filtered into the litigation processes. File collections, electronic discovery, and review have been increasingly influenced by computer forensics due to the large amounts of electronically stored information relevant to litigation cases.
When I first attended the LegalTech shows in the mid 90’s, the initial popularity of imaging (paper scanning) and managing paper based documents electronically was evident. A new breed of software emerged to handle the demands, to create full text searchable versions of the images, to endorse the documents (electronic bates numbering), and to create load files so the information could be imported into litigation support databases and review tools.
Towards the end of the 90’s, “electronic discovery” began to take shape. An increasing proportion of relevant documents were files and emails on computers versus paper stored in filing cabinets. A new wave of applications appeared that could convert the files directly into images (print to TIFF). Harvesting metadata of file contents and indices also emerged, along with creating searchable databases.
Now it is a decade later, and we can see that the majority of relevant documents are electronic and the means to preserve them have become widely recognized. The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure were amended to accommodate the new electronic world we live it. The requirements to properly preserve electronically stored information (ESI), establish timelines, examine metadata and recover user activity, deleted files and emails, and several other critical tasks has created the need for computer forensics and electronic discovery professionals to work together to conduct electronic based litigation.
Wow! – The last 15 years have been packed with some drastic changes in the way we collect, filter, and review documents. This new era that requires litigation support and computer forensics professionals to work hand in hand is challenging and rewarding. Our professional goals include developing products, services, and educational materials that help guide legal departments, service bureaus, and computer forensics experts through this changing environment…
If you are in New York next week, please drop by our booth (#429) so we can visit. LegalTech New York runs from February 2-4 at the New York Hilton and Towers. By working together and sharing our knowledge and experiences, we will continue to improve the processes and support tools available.