E-Discovery Certification: A Must for Legal Professionals
One of the fastest growing professions in the legal services industry is that of E-Discovery professionals. E-discovery refers to the process by which electronic documents such as emails, word documents, spreadsheets, and audio and video files are admitted as legally acceptable evidence for use in litigation cases.
While it may be simple enough for litigants to produce electronic documents to support their cases, the actual federal requirements, issued by the United States Supreme Court in 2006, are quite stringent and as such, many may find their electronically documented evidence actually being deemed inadmissible and subsequently tossed out. It therefore takes an e-discovery professional, versed in the various nuances of federal requirements for submission of electronic documents, to ensure successful document submission.
In today’s technologically driven world where more and more persons are choosing to communicate electronically, the issue of electronic documents being used as evidence in court cases is becoming increasingly prevalent. As such, the need for e-discovery professionals is growing. In Addition, this need is predicted to continue growing in leaps and bounds over the coming years.
The increase in the demand for e-discovery professionals has led to a demand for programs that are geared towards providing persons with the requisite knowledge and skills needed to operate in this capacity. These programs are called e-discovery certification programs and the number of programs available for industry players to choose from has been increasing steadily across the nation.
These programs are necessary because they bridge that all-important gap between modern technology and the rendering of vital legal services. As such, they serve to assist attorneys and those who work in the legal industry in the process of updating themselves and their firms so that they are able to function in this technology-driven world.
It is therefore very important for legal industry professionals to enroll in an e-discovery certification course and undergo some level of training in the process of e-discovery. In fact, certification in e-discovery may soon prove to be the deciding factor between attorneys who are able to effectively represent their clients in cases featuring electronically documented evidence, and those who cannot because of their inability to adequately handle the e-discovery process.
With the importance of training in the e-discovery process so clearly established, legal professionals should be happy to know that finding a certification program to enroll in is quite simple. One resource that may be utilized by persons seeking to enroll in e-discovery programs in their ‘neck of the woods’ is the internet. The internet is a great tool that can provide persons with information on countless available programs. Those interested in becoming certified may also seek referrals from other legal professionals who have already enrolled in a local program. With so many programs to choose form there really is no excuse for persons working within the legal industry not to get certified in the process of e-discovery.
An employee at a care center recently took this case to the state's high court after a lower court rejected her privacy claim. Plaintiff Maria Stengart had been contacting an attorney via e-mail on a work laptop to discuss a situation at her employer at the time, Loving Care Agency. After leaving the employer, it confiscated the computer and forensically made copies of all e-mails that were placed as temporary files on the computer, including the messages to the attorney. Once the plaintiff learned of the agency having copies of the files, she wanted them returned but the agency refused, thus resulting in the case going to court. .jpg){kind=spacer}
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Combined with TERIS’ existing portfolio of eDiscovery solutions, clients now have access to the broadest array of “best of breed” solutions – from culling to review. Corporations can use TERIS’ Relativity solution to reduce the risks and control the costs associated with litigation, while law firms will benefit from Relativity’s strengths as an industry-leading document review platform. 
You can make e-discovery easier by knowing how the court separates electronically stored information (ESI) into two tiers; the seven basic steps in e-discovery; implications of the e-discovery federal rules; and the timeline that actually begins prior to litigation.
enterprise repositories, including file and email servers, archives, and Microsoft SharePoint. Collected ESI is then stored in Autonomy's secure, cloud-based archive, enabling organizations to perform defensible and systemized preservation and collection in the shortest amount of time to meet the preservation obligation. This new solution, which is a key part of Autonomy's industry-leading Legal Hold solution suite, enables global organizations to comply with data privacy laws around the world by ensuring that personal data that does not pertain to the legal case will not be collected.
"According to the American Bar Association, California has one of the largest populations of attorneys per state in the country, so this poll speaks volumes toward CT Summation's leadership position and trusted brand in the legal industry," said Tom Rump, general manager, CT Summation. "Simply put, the speed and accuracy that CT Summation gives to its clients to review, analyze and produce electronic documents is unprecedented."