US Magistrate Judge Andrew Peck is a tireless promoter of eDiscovery best practices. Although best known for his Da Silva Moore and Rio Tinto Opinions on the use of technology-assisted review, he is authoritative also on subjects as diverse as cross-border eDiscovery and (a particular favourite) the proper use of Federal Rule of Evidence 502d.
I had the opportunity to interview him recently and the result appears below. Among other subjects, Judge Peck covers the growing use of technology-assisted review – more than previously but not as much as it should be, he says; the role of the court in managing the eDiscovery process; the importance of reading and understanding the procedural rules; and the fact that TAR is not just a technology black box but a process requiring lawyer intelligence in training and using the system.
We will, he says, be in serious trouble if those managing litigation stick to the way the senior lawyers always used to work. It is necessary to understand the technology at a level sufficient to articulate its merits to the judge.
Along the way, Judge Peck emphasises the importance of making proper use of FRE 502d to protect the position in the case of inadvertent disclosure of privileged material.
As always, Judge Peck crams a lot of useful guidance into a short space.
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