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Press Release
Electronic Redaction Shown as Essential Tool in e-Discovery
for Securing Privileged and Confidential Data
White Paper Establishes Electronic Redaction as Powerful
Weapon in e-Discovery Arsenal to Reduce Time-Intensive Review
Phase While Ensuring Integrity
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.—September 17, 2008—Informative Graphics Corporation
(IGC), a leader in viewing, collaboration and redaction technology,
today announced availability of a new white paper entitled Reducing
the Risk of Inadvertent Information Disclosure with Electronic Redaction.
This paper addresses methods and concerns regarding the protection
of sensitive, privileged and confidential information during the e-Discovery
review phase and the importance of automated electronic redaction
in streamlining processes.
The management of an exponentially increasing universe of electronically
stored information (ESI) is challenging the legal community to more
efficiently control discovery. “The question comes down to how to
do it effectively,” says Eric J. Sinrod, a partner with Duane Morris
LLP in San Francisco.
The answer is complicated by the 2006 amendments to the Federal Rules
of Civil Procedure (FRCP), which expanded the types of sensitive and
proprietary content that are discoverable, as well as how legal teams
must handle them. A recent example of incorrectly redacted documents
filed in the PACER federal court filing system highlighted the danger
of publicly revealing information sealed by court order. Failure to
comply with the rules of redaction can be costly both to a firm and
its client. According to FRCP Rule 5.2, the following types of data
must be redacted before filing documents:
- All but the last four digits of a social security number and
taxpayer identification number;
- The month and day of an individual’s birth;
- A minor’s name (only their initials may be used); and,
- All but the last four digits of financial account numbers.
These points are meant to be merely guidelines. If the last four digits
of an individual’s social security number are irrelevant to a particular
matter, the entire number can be redacted. The widespread impact of
the amendments to the FRCP has heightened awareness of document review
and production in ways that have transformed the process. Judges are
more attentive and adversaries are far more sophisticated. “The importance
of redaction cannot be overstressed,” says Dan Sedor, a partner and
co-chair of the Discovery Technology Group with Jeffer Mangels Butler & Marmaro
LLP.
Sedor notes that a single electronic file may contain privileged information,
as well as relevant, non-privileged and discoverable details. He highlights
that a producing party and its lawyers are obliged to produce the
latter but must protect the privilege as to the former. “Platforms
that permit redaction facilitate production of responsive information
while protecting the privilege,” he adds. The industry’s Electronic
Discovery Reference Model (EDRM) identifies various phases of discovery
for which there may be an expense and the review phase, where redaction
occurs, is the single largest cost center in the continuum. In fact,
as part of the review process, it is the responsibility of legal counsel
to properly redact all documents prior to production. As a recent
survey reveals, most lawyers are manually searching through thousands
of printed documents, wasting time and exposing their review to the
likelihood of human error. The combination of impracticality and risk
endanger a case before an adversary receives a sheet of paper. Reducing
the Risk of Inadvertent Information Disclosure with Electronic Redaction
identifies challenges and available technology innovations surrounding
e-Discovery and the process of redaction, including:
- The importance of automated electronic redaction during the review
phase of e-Discovery to reduce risk, time and resource requirements
- Enhancing credibility through proper redaction techniques
- Reducing the risk of improper redaction
- Native file redaction and spoliation
- Leveraging modern redaction techniques to protect and preserve
key data
“In an era where the volume of information is growing exponentially,
but the pressure to cut costs and process documents more quickly increases,
electronic redaction can help legal teams shorten the most expensive
and time-intensive element in e-discovery,” explained Gary Heath,
CEO of Informative Graphics. “This technology reduces the risk of
inadvertent information disclosure while preserving the integrity
of the process.”
To download a free copy of Reducing the Risk of Inadvertent Information
Disclosure During e-Discovery with Electronic Redaction, please visit www.redact-it.com/whitepapers/.
About Informative Graphics (www.infograph.com)
Informative Graphics Corporation (IGC),
founded in 1990, is a leading developer of commercial software
products for viewing, collaboration and redaction. IGC products,
including Redact-It and viewing/collaboration/annotation tool
Brava!, are renowned for their cost-saving value, ease-of-use,
features, and scalability and are deployed by thousands of
corporations, law firms, and government entities in the United
States and internationally. IGC maintains offices in the United
States and partners with key distribution partners worldwide.
Contact
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Note to Editors: Informative Graphics, Brava! and Redact-It are registered
trademarks of Informative Graphics Corporation. All other names are
the properties of their respective owners. |
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