Inside Counsel Give Top Tips for Controlling E-Discovery Costs in New FTI Technology Study
November 04 2009 - 7:30AM
PR Newswire (US)
Webinar and Study Highlight Advice from Fortune 1000 Counsel for
Controlling E-Discovery Costs NEW YORK, Nov. 4
/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- FTI Consulting, Inc. (NYSE: FCN), the
global business advisory firm dedicated to helping organizations
protect and enhance their enterprise value, today announced the
results of an FTI-funded study of in-house counsel and e-discovery
professionals. The findings, as well as several tips from
interviewees on how to control e-discovery costs, are available for
download from FTI Technology and highlight many of the common steps
companies have successfully taken to reduce the overall cost of
e-discovery. "Nearly three years after the Federal Rules of Civil
Procedure (FRCP) were amended, many corporations have made great
progress in implementing both short-term tactical and long-term
strategic plans for e-discovery," said Adam Cohen, senior managing
director of FTI Technology. "The study highlights specific
e-discovery best practices in effect today at leading corporations,
and can serve as a practical guide for all corporate counsel in
targeting and improving this complex and costly process." Among the
findings: -- Legal review: 72% of respondents cited legal review as
the most expensive phase of e-discovery, and gave numerous
suggestions from experience on how corporations could reduce costs.
-- Using fewer providers: 97% of respondents cited using fewer
providers to support the e-discovery process as one of the more
important considerations in the selection process. --
Defensibility: The most important factor for selecting both
software and legal services was defensibility, with 62% naming it
as a top factor in selection of e-discovery software and 52% for
legal services. -- E-discovery vendor viability: Ahead of cost,
corporate counsel prioritized selecting a provider with long-term
viability, given many uncertainties in the rapidly evolving
e-discovery market. Viability was listed as the second most
important factor when selecting a software vendor (by 41%) and a
legal service provider (by 45%). -- In-house control: 86% said they
had developed and implemented more effective and holistic
information management, retention and destruction policies, and had
also reduced the overall amount of data in-house to streamline
review. -- E-discovery cost savings: Cost was cited as the third
and fourth most important factors respectively when selecting legal
service providers and software. "As part of this study I spoke with
an in-house legal team member that had reduced their e-discovery
and legal fees by as much as $2 million in one year through
implementing more efficient legal review software and processes,"
said Ari Kaplan, legal consultant and principal of Ari Kaplan
Advisors. "The findings are exciting in that they go beyond
theoretical best practices and show tangible, quantifiable evidence
of the measures that corporations are using to reduce e-discovery
costs today." The study targeted Fortune 1000 companies and is
based on interviews of 29 inside counsel, project managers, records
managers, and IT leaders with responsibility for e-discovery.
Representing companies from some of the most litigious and
regulated industries, including financial services, energy and
pharmaceuticals, 93% of respondents were from Fortune 1000
companies and nearly half of the respondents were from companies
with total annual revenues greater than $10 billion. Interviewees
were asked to share their advice with those just beginning the
e-discovery process, and answered a number of questions relating to
the most expensive steps in e-discovery and their own strategies
for controlling e-discovery costs. Interviews were conducted by Ari
Kaplan, legal consultant and principal of Ari Kaplan Advisors,
during the summer of 2009. FTI will host a November 5th Web seminar
on the findings with Ari Kaplan of Ari Kaplan Advisors and Adam
Cohen of FTI Technology. To register for the event, please visit
the FTI Technology site. For more information on FTI Technology,
please visit http://www.ftitechnology.com/. About FTI Consulting
FTI Consulting, Inc. is a global business advisory firm dedicated
to helping organizations protect and enhance enterprise value in an
increasingly complex legal, regulatory and economic environment.
With more than 3,500 employees located in most major business
centers in the world, we work closely with clients every day to
anticipate, illuminate, and overcome complex business challenges in
areas such as investigations, litigation, mergers and acquisitions,
regulatory issues, reputation management and restructuring. More
information can be found at http://www.fticonsulting.com/.
DATASOURCE: FTI Consulting, Inc. CONTACT: AT FTI: Kate Andrejack
Holmes, +1-206-373-6521, Web Site: http://www.fticonsulting.com/
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