הקדמה

Litigation costs have been rising in recent years, attributable in part to an increase in the volume of documentary evidence and corresponding complexity of cases. This trend, fueled by the widespread use of e-mail communication in business and cheaper digital storage, is likely to set the tone for the future. The explosion in documentary evidence means trial lawyers are now spending significantly more time reviewing documentary evidence; and trial teams are growing larger as more support resources are now required for trial preparation.

עם זאת, the assumption that an increase in the volume of documentary evidence must necessarily result in a corresponding increase in the number of lawyers engaged in the case is fallacious. It is a fallacy because it is premised on the fact that trial preparation methods remain unchanged. יותר באופן משמעותי, it fails to take into account the changing nature of documentary evidence (data in electronic form as opposed to physical paper files stored in filing cabinets) and fails to recognise the availability of new technologies designed to facilitate the trial preparation process.1

Just as technology has given rise to the document explosion, technology also offers a solution to litigation teams ready to adopt methodologies more befitting to digital information. Law firms tied to traditional hour-billing model may question the wisdom of deploying methods that promote fewer review hours and less lawyer involvement. In the long run, עם זאת, we believe that a competitive marketplace and more knowledgeable clientele guarantees that more efficient modes of production will triumph over less efficient ones. [Read more...]