The latest show that our family has picked up watching during quarantine is “Insane Pools Off the Deep End,” which features Lucas Congdon, a Florida-based designer that builds custom pools. The show has a formula where he meets with the homeowners, then designs and builds the pools using both his crew and a variety of subcontractors. Congdon always knows just the right person to go to when he needs to create that custom piece of furniture, where to buy the right rocks, where to have boulders cut, etc.
Successfully completing a custom construction project like the ones that Congdon specializes in takes years of experience and, as a professional, he makes it look easy. EDiscovery projects are much the same. EDiscovery done well is a carefully orchestrated project that requires a lot of experience to bring the right partners to the table, to ensure the resources are at the right place at the right time, and to focus on bringing everything toward a great result. That is what eDiscovery Managing Counsel does. Whether on a significant matter, or on a portfolio, the eDiscovery Managing Counsel acts as a general contractor that is responsible for the project and sets up everyone involved in the project for success. Here are the key components we leverage as eDiscovery Managing Counsel:
- Core Team. Our core team of eDiscovery lawyers manages the design and ensures that everything and everyone is operating smoothly. When there are bumps in the road that require an assessment of options, the Baker eDiscovery lawyers are the designers and problem-solvers.
- The Right Partners. We have a deep bench of eDiscovery partners and seek to bring the best “fit” to each project. With no internal technology to sell, we seek partners who put client experience first, and provide the technology and services that match the needs of the project.
- Seamless Integration. An eDiscovery process that is well-designed empowers each component part to do its job better and more effectively. Merits counsel can be freed up to focus on the fact and legal development necessary to win; in-house IT department personnel have someone who understands their world and is capable and willing to listen; and vendors can operate in an environment where the technology and services are leveraged to their fullest.
- Results Focus. As experienced eDiscovery professionals, our goal is the results: saving money, getting to the merits, and empowering the client, partners and trial team to get the best results within their realms.
Serving as eDiscovery Managing Counsel is a core competency of Baker Donelson. For instance, this coming Tuesday, June 16, Baker Donelson is hosting a webinar: “Managing ‘Unmanageable’ Litigation.” The presenters are Baker attorneys Jennifer Cooper, Chair of the Complex Torts Practice Group, and David Rueff, Chief Client Solutions Officer. This program shows how coordinating counsel services can generally reduce legal expenses and ensure seamless integration of technology, lawyers, staff and clients into workflows. To join the webinar, click here.
David Rueff
When I was talking about this concept with David, who has a deep background in legal project management and data-driven process, he had this to say: “Sometimes clients think that an additional partner in the process will just equate to more, rather than less, cost. But, bringing management, structure and process becomes a natural extension of in-house counsel, supported by excellent reported and proven results backed up with the hard data. Coordinating services is a force multiplier for your legal spend and puts your litigation budgets to work. The question is not if you can afford to do a better job managing. It is how can you afford not to.”
Our next blog will be published Friday, June 12, and will be an interview with Dan Regard, CEO of iDS. This is another installment of our series “Sitting with the C-Suite,” and we talk to Dan about data as a witness, eDiscovery pro bono, and the future of eDiscovery.
In the meantime, feel free to reach out at csanko@bakerdonelson.com.
