Adv Electronic Discovery Skills

Catalog description

Electronic discovery ("e-discovery" or "eDiscovery" for all the hipsters that joined the practice after 2008 including Professor Tilot) is a discipline required to work with digital evidence during litigation, arbitration, and investigations. It is arguably the most complex part of modern civil litigation in the United States. Fast paced advancement in information technology and the resulting tsunami of digital evidence have proven to be profoundly challenging to the judicial system. The enormous volumes of data generated by litigants and the resultant costs of eDiscovery drive litigation and settlement strategy. The law, the courts and legal practitioners have all had to adjust. Both knowledge of eDiscovery and practical application of eDiscovery are differentiators for many clients choosing counsel and for law firms hiring litigation attorneys. This course will provide you with practical skills that will help you advocate for your clients and be cognizant of the challenges that eDiscovery can create from a litigation and cost perspective. These are must-have skills for litigators regardless of the area of practice. Law 367 will focus on early stage eDiscovery practice. Development of an eDiscovery strategy and negotiation of discovery protocols are two particularly challenging and vitally important aspects of litigation practice. The decisions and concessions made during these early stage tasks ripple throughout the course of a lawsuit. Law 367 will focus on developing the legal acumen and practice skills necessary to successfully navigate these two areas. The purpose of the course is twofold, providing students with a practical understanding of: ¿ eDiscovery concepts that are critical to discovery planning and successful conduct of party negotiations including Meet & Confer Sessions (Rule 26(f) Conferences) ¿ The impacts that early eDiscovery decisions have on case strategy and downstream outcomes