Altep, Inc - Altep - Innovative Litigation Solutions

Managing the complexities of e-discovery – the varying data types, the infrastructure requirements and the legal and operational ramifications – often proves overwhelming.  For firms that do manage to handle all aspects of their discovery projects independently, the costs present a serious burden, increasing as case loads expand and diversify.  Long-term, most firms arrive at the conclusion that an efficient partnership between in-house counsel, outside counsel and a reliable support team presents the best model for success.

That being said, achieving such a partnership is no small undertaking.  Roles and expectations must be carefully defined and managed, and avenues of communication must be established early on and maintained throughout each case.  Standardization and a common, agreed-upon set of protocols for collection, processing, review and production of both electronically stored information and paper documents are critical.   However, organizations that successfully develop an e-discovery “triumvirate” generally enjoy improved transparency in their litigation management efforts across all teams; better control over discovery and review costs; more efficient knowledge management; and reduced risk of sanctions and further exposure.

Of course, in any discovery partnership, each entity must focus on the common primary goal:  to develop and maintain a discovery management strategy that is thoroughly documented, legally defensible, and scalable to any type of litigation.

During the course of their combined twenty-one years as preferred litigation solutions partners for numerous Fortune 100 corporations, Altep and SuperiorReview have developed a unique Discovery Partnership Model, in which each of the key players – in-house counsel, outside counsel,  Altep and SuperiorReview – share the burden of managing complex discovery and production projects.  Under this model, each partner is responsible one or more critical aspects of the process.  At specific junctures in the discovery life cycle, activity and responsibility transfer from one player to the next.  Throughout the partnership, a dedicated Project Manager acts as an independent facilitator to ensure timely and appropriate communication between all parties.  The Project Manager may be assigned by SuperiorReview or by Altep, depending on the focus and goals of the project.

In-House Counsel as First Responders

In-House Counsel perform the initial analysis to determine the scope and impact of the case, identify potential data sources,  prepare budget estimates and evaluate resource allocation.  As information becomes available, in-house counsel set processing priorities, develop the timeline for collection, processing and review, and set the milestones that teams must meet in order to comply with court-imposed discovery deadlines.

A Project Manager who will be the primary point of contact for the duration of the project is assigned by either Altep or SuperiorReview.

Altep as Technology Experts

Altep’s discovery and technology teams work with in-house counsel and internal litigation support staff to gain control of data, by developing and implementing standardized protocols.  During planning, we assist with identifying data sources and key custodians, planning collection strategies, establishing the chain of custody, deciding on a Bates schema and other naming conventions, and determining production format.

After data has been collected, we assist in-house and outside counsel with data reduction strategies including early data assessment and first-past culling via interactive EDA in the Nuix platform.  We then propose EDD processing criteria and collaborate with counsel to select parameters that will effectively and defensibly reduce the document population to the relevant dataset.

Once processed, the culled data population is loaded for review, and Altep’s data management teams promote Outside Counsel’s understanding of its content and meaning by developing search terms and queries, pre-tagging sub-sets of data, and leveraging conceptual analytics to reveal patterns and trends in the information.

Outside Counsel as Subject Matter Experts

After processing and analysis, hosted data is ready for review.  Outside Counsel is free to focus on facts of the case, develop an effective defense and investigate the content of the document population.   Data is hosted in Altep's custom-developed document review platform, Inspicio®, which offers true native document review, fully integrated conceptual analytics, and a variety of other time- and money-saving features.  Alternately, Altep will host data for review in the client's preferred application.

As needed, SuperiorReview provides additional assistance with review project management, supplementary discovery consulting and legal review services.  Altep’s and SuperiorReview remain engaged to facilitate effective, focused review techniques and assist Counsel in meeting deadlines and controlling review costs.  Throughout the discovery lifecycle, the assigned Project Manager promotes and enhances communication between all parties, and provides regular, objective reporting on standards, processes and status.