I was honored to chat with Tom O’Connor and Rachi Messing recently. They have an interview series on the eDiscovery Channel where their guests share how they got started in this industry. There are over 30 case studies on this site about people’s journeys in our industry, but this is
After electronic discovery has been “processed” and “indexed“, the legal team can then perform “keyword searches”. Although there is much debate in our industry about the proficiency and accuracy of performing keyword searches to isolate subsets of data to be reviewed and analyzed, prior to production, the legal team performs
In this article, I would like to introduce you to four people that I am extremely proud of. As you may be aware, getting that first opportunity in litigation support entails many variables, some of which you have no control over, but for some, you absolutely do. Sometimes it is
In a previous article on the topic of electronic discovery, I began the conversation about a term we use called “processing”. As I mentioned in that article, the term “processing” encompasses many steps, which can make it one of the most difficult topics to teach to newbies in litigation support.
It is a good idea to get familiar with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, especially as they apply to electronic discovery. In addition, each state may have their own eDiscovery rules. Below are three resources that have aggregated state-level information with regard to electronic discovery rules. Current Listing of States
This is yet another term we toss around when discussing electronic discovery. We borrowed the term “cull” from other meanings. If you look up the definition, it will mention (1) reducing the population of a wild animal or (2) selecting from a large quantity; obtain from a variety of sources.
Do you consider yourself to be a “team player”? This descriptive gets tossed around a lot, especially during the interview process. But, to me, it is vital to the success of the entire team and it should not be taken lightly. I am not a fan of team members who do
This fast tip demonstrates how to add another file as an attachment to a PDF file. This feature is available in Adobe Acrobat (even the Reader version) and Nuance Power PDF.
This fast tip demonstrates how to use the Excel Power Query Modulo feature to clean up a report and make it more user friendly. Download Sample Files
This fast tip demonstrates how to use Nuance Power PDF Advanced to import a search term list, perform searches across multiple PDF files, and mark all of the terms for redaction. In a previous tutorial, I demonstrated how to Search and Highlight Across Multiple PDFs Using Adobe Acrobat Pro.
In a previous article, I began a discussion about processing electronic discovery. One of the decisions we need to make before we begin processing electronic discovery is related to time zone. Most of the software used in our industry to perform processing will require a setting for the time zone. If all
This fast tip demonstrates how to download pages from a website, in case you need to get a “snapshot in time” of a website for a litigation matter, using free software called HTTrack Website Copier. In a previous tutorial, I demonstrated how to download web pages to PDF using Adobe
This fast tip demonstrates how to insert a table into an Outlook email.
This fast tip demonstrates how to insert a screenshot into Microsoft Office applications without having screenshot software.
This fast tip demonstrates how to split a PDF into multiple PDF files.
This fast tip demonstrates how to use a newline instead of a new paragraph in Microsoft Word.
This fast tip demonstrates how to easily remove names from the auto-complete list in Outlook.
This fast tip demonstrates how to make a photo transparent by removing the background using Microsoft PowerPoint.
This fast tip demonstrates how to perform a search and replace across multiple PDF files using Adobe Acrobat. This feature is available in both Acrobat XI and DC.
This fast tip demonstrates how to create a batch file that will copy files from one location to another and rename the files in the process. In this tutorial, I referenced three previous articles: Fast Tip Friday – Using DOS to Create File Listing Fast Tip Friday – Excel Fill
You know that expression that says “everything is not all about you”? Well, in this case, it really is all about you. As the end of the year approaches, I am near the end of another teaching semester. This is the point in the semester where I assign reflective exercises
This fast tip demonstrates how to create screenshots using the built-in Snipping Tool in Windows. In a previous Fast Tip Friday tutorial, I demonstrated how to use the art of rubber banding.
This fast tip demonstrates how to save web pages to a PDF file using Adobe Acrobat.
I often receive questions about taking certifications in our industry, so I thought this article would be a good reference for the LitSuppGuru community. My friend and fellow blogger, Sean O’Shea, has agreed to let me share his article below. Sean shares what it was like to study for and
This fast tip demonstrates how to use the Transpose feature in Excel.
Like many other “seasoned” litigation support professionals, I remember when businesses did not use email. By the time, email started showing up “at the office”, I was already working with litigators. So, I was helping with litigation discovery that was primarily in paper form and maybe a small portion of
This fast tip demonstrates how to extract the audio from a video file using a free tool called VLC Media Player.
This fast tip demonstrates how to use a Chrome browser extension called The Great Suspender to reduce memory usage.
In a previous article on the topic of electronic discovery, I began the conversation about a term we use called “processing”. Later, I wrote a few articles about some issues that come up during the processing of electronic discovery. One was exceptions and the other was embedded objects. Another issue that
This fast tip demonstrates how to use a free program called TextStat to quickly and easily generate a concordance (aka word list) from multiple MS Word documents. NOTE: If you have PDF files, you could convert them to MS Word format or text format in order to use this software
This fast tip demonstrates how to use an Adobe Acrobat action to perform searches across multiple PDF files, highlight all of the terms and extract the pages that have hits highlighted. The highlight colors available to use in the javascript are listed below: color.transparent color.black color.white color.dkGray color.gray color.ltGray color.red
This fast tip demonstrates how to use an Adobe Acrobat action to import a search term list, perform searches across multiple PDF files, and highlight all of the terms. The highlight colors available to use in the javascript are listed below: color.transparent color.black color.white color.dkGray color.gray color.ltGray color.red color.green color.blue
Typically, when ESI arrives, the attorney wants to know the volume of documents as quickly as possible. This fast tip demonstrates how to use the free iConvert 2015 software to generate an ESI report.
One of the nifty and powerful tools in our litigation support tool belt is “regular expressions.” We use regular expressions to match patterns of data that we need to search for and then perhaps manipulate in some way. A few examples of easy-to-recognize “data patterns” are social security numbers (999-99-9999) and
This fast tip demonstrates how to use the SUBSTITUTE formula in Excel. NOTE: While I realize that we could simply replace JONES_ with JONES- in this example, I wanted to keep things simple and leave it up to your imagination to see how useful this formula could be one day
This fast tip demonstrates how to apply paragraph formatting in MS Word to avoid widows and orphans, as well as controlling whether a paragraph is allowed to break across two pages.
This fast tip demonstrates how to save a web page to your hard drive.
This fast tip demonstrates how to use SnagIt to capture a screenshot of a scrolling web page.
One thing about working in litigation support, that might not be as much fun, is that we have to deal with strong personalities. For whatever reason, there are a lot of strong personalities working in the legal industry. I am not just talking about attorneys. It applies to paralegals, legal secretaries,
This fast tip demonstrates how to use an Acrobat action sequence to remove the same password from PDF files in a folder, including subfolders. Download Sample Files
This fast tip demonstrates how to use a free web tool to identify emails with large attachments if your Gmail Inbox is getting full.
This fast tip demonstrates how to configure Notepad++ to create backup copies in case there is a need to revert back to a previous version.
This fast tip demonstrates how to insert “Page # of #” into the footer without choosing one of the default templates in Microsoft Word.
This fast tip shares a website called IFTTT that allows you to set up automations that will take action automatically.
This fast tip demonstrates how to use the VLOOKUP function in Excel to compare two lists of bates numbers and then a couple of ways to visually present the results. In a previous fast tip, I demonstrated an alternative way to use Excel to compare two lists. Download Sample Files
In a previous article, I began a discussion about processing electronic discovery. Another step of the process is dealing with the exceptions. One result of attempting to process all of the electronic files is a list of files that were unable to be processed. We refer to these files as exceptions.
This fast tip demonstrates how to restrict editing to specific portions of an MS Word document while making the rest of the document read-only.
This fast tip demonstrates how to delete a persistent drive mapping using a DOS command.
This fast tip demonstrates the benefits of using MS Word section breaks instead of tables to list items in your resume. Download Sample Files
This fast tip demonstrates how to perform a search in a load file, bookmark the resulting lines, and copy the bookmarked lines to a new text file. Download Sample Files
Have you ever stopped to think about the significant people in your life? Do you find that you are so busy living your life, going through the daily, weekly, monthly routine of managing work and/or family expectations, that you sometimes neglect to acknowledge those significant people that have touched your heart in
