This fast tip will demonstrate how to rename generically numbered TIFF files to filenames that include a prefix and zero padding. The tool is a free software program called Bulk Rename Utility. Download Sample Files
In previous electronic discovery articles, I discussed the Subpoena/CID, the Legal Hold, the Identification of Custodians, and the Collection. One very important component of the collection of electronic discovery is preservation of the chain of custody. If the collection process is being handled by forensic professionals, they have very strict procedures for maintaing the chain of custody. They…
Gone are the days where we need to print a PDF document, handwrite our signature on the paper version, scan the paper into a PDF file, and then email the PDF file. We can use Adobe Reader or Adobe Acrobat to electronically sign the PDF document and save a signed (and flattened) version of the…
Imagine the associate attorney sitting in front of their computer staring at a database containing tens of thousands of documents. It is the beginning of the litigation matter and no one on the legal team has a good sense of what is in the document collection yet. At some point, the legal team will want…
In electronic discovery matters, we tend to collect a lot of Excel files from our clients. This fast tip is an interesting Excel macro that generates a report of all of the worksheets within all of the Excel files in a folder. Download Sample Files
During a litigation matter, there is often a need to produce documents in PDF format. This fast tip demonstrates how to endorse PDF files for production. Download Sample Files
All roles within a legal team have had the need to compare two lists of bates numbers. This fast tip will share one easy way to do that using Excel. Download Sample Files
Another topic when training a litigation support newbie is the concept of how we go about getting searchable documents for our document databases. One of the most important reasons why we provide litigators with document databases is to enable the legal team to perform searches across all of the documents in order to find the…
We create a lot of screenshots in litigation support. We use a number of different software tools to create the screenshots. My favorite is Snagit. This fast tip demonstrates one of my favorite Snagit features and I provide some examples of why I use it. For reference, you can read my previous Snagit article.
This fast tip will demonstrate how to use DOS commands to create a file listing. In another Fast Tip Friday, I demonstrated how to get a list of all files in a folder using an Excel macro. Download Sample Files
When training a newbie in litigation support, I always explain to them the concept of control numbers versus bates numbers. In order to create a litigation document database, we need every record (document) in the database to have a unique identifier field. The criteria for the contents of this field is as follows: 1. The value…
This fast tip will demonstrate how to use the Bulk Rename Utility software with a text file that will instruct the software how to rename the files. To learn more about the concatenate function used in this tutorial, see my article entitled Concatenate – Fancy Word, Simple Meaning. Download Sample Files
Concatenate is one of many fancy words we learn while working in litigation support. It is a technical term and it is a verb defined as “to link (things) together in a chain or series.” Most of the time we are using concatenation to piece together multiple values. We also have the ability to insert additional values…
When we collect and process electronic data from a number of custodians, we usually create a folder for each custodian to store their data. This fast tip will share a shortcut for creating those folders that can save us a bunch of time. In another Fast Tip Friday, I demonstrated how to create subfolders using an Excel…
I have been doing litigation support for a long time. I have worked with many attorneys on many cases. I have worked with many service providers. I know the various processes the attorneys will use to decide which document sets need to be included in the next production set. I have observed the attorneys making promises to…
In a litigation matter, after the subpoena is received and the custodians are identified, we begin to collect the client’s documents, both hardcopy and electronic. The document collections may be handled by the client’s IT staff and this can be a little concerning if the IT staff does not understand electronic discovery protocols. It is better…
Have you ever felt destined for something else, but you are stuck where you are? For the last 3 years, I have been involved in what I have referred to as “my 4 jobs”. Job 1: Working full-time in a litigation support role at a law firm in Washington DC. Job 2: Working in a management position…
One of the best practices in Legal Project Management (LPM) is demonstrating to the legal teams how we techies can add value. We were having a team meeting related to a case that had a large document database in Relativity. The legal team had several concurrent sub-projects for this matter. The attorneys were teamed up to resolve…
I believe that the best way to learn litigation support is by working through real-life, on-the-job scenarios. This article is about a scenario that landed on my plate a few years ago. In a previous article, I talked about the importance of creating cheat sheets in litigation support. After I figured out a solution to…
Brace yourselves LitSuppGuru readers. This is the very first guest article ever published on this site and it comes to you from Diane Enoch-Poling, one of my closest friends. I hope you enjoy her story. If you do, please share your comments after the article. Transformation: From Practicing Attorney to Litigation Support Professional, or How…
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