What is eDiscovery?

Electronic discovery, commonly known as eDiscovery or e-discovery, is the process of identifying, collecting, preserving, reviewing, and exchanging electronically stored information (ESI) for use as evidence in legal proceedings. In today's digital business environment, where almost all corporate communications and documents exist in electronic form, effective eDiscovery has become a critical operational necessity for organizations of all sizes.

Why is eDiscovery important?

Today’s businesses face growing legal and regulatory pressure. Legal teams are no longer just focused on reducing risk—they’re expected to act as strategic partners who add real value.

A strong eDiscovery process helps legal teams stay compliant, manage costs, and lower risk. Being able to quickly find, preserve, and share the right electronic information can make a big difference in legal cases or investigations.

Good eDiscovery practices also help prevent penalties for mishandling data and show that the organization is making a genuine effort to meet its legal responsibilities.

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The fundamentals of eDiscovery

The discovery process in litigation requires that parties exchange documents relevant to the case. As most documentation is now created, stored, and exchanged in digital form, this element of discovery has become known as electronic discovery—or eDiscovery—and has become an accepted part of legal systems worldwide.

Today, the process of preserving, collecting, locating, searching, reviewing, analyzing and acting on electronically stored information (ESI) involved in eDiscovery applies to a broader range of business use cases beyond civil litigation, including a wide range of use cases: responding to data breaches, handling privacy or subject rights requests, and conducting internal investigations.

eDiscovery covers everything from emails, documents, and databases to social media posts, instant messages, videos, audio files, mobile data, and the metadata tied to them.

Today’s businesses need to process and analyze large volumes of electronic data while preserving its integrity and authenticity. This is no small task—especially given the variety of formats, locations, and access levels.

Too often, teams focus only on the narrow task of sorting data into what’s relevant or not and sending reviewed files (with privileged or sensitive information removed) to opposing parties. But when that’s the only focus, the bigger picture—like uncovering key evidence, shaping case strategy, or reducing risks in investigations—can fall through the cracks.

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Why is manual paper-based discovery no longer tenable?

Around 20 years ago, dealing with the volume of digital information within an organization could be managed manually.

This is no longer true in the world of big data. ESI includes emails, documents, presentations, databases, enterprise applications, voicemail, audio and video files, social media, the web, and, increasingly, chat and collaborative platforms, among others.

Paper-based discovery is known to be costly, time-consuming, and resource-heavy but dealing with digital information adds significant layers of complexity to these challenges. The result is that eDiscovery can require more time and more budget.

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What factors need to be considered in dealing with modern digital data?

When discussing big data, experts often talk about the volume, velocity, variety, and veracity of the information. When undertaking eDiscovery, you need to consider:

Volume
ESI makes it simple to create multiple versions of the same document. Most organizations quickly find themselves with multiple versions of documents stored in various locations within the organization, and, sometimes, outside the organization with contractors, suppliers, and customers.

Velocity
There is an exploding number of channels that every company works with today. These channels are not just corporate systems and databases; they encompass email, mobile devices, web, and increasingly social media channels. The COVID-19 pandemic saw an increased use of chat and collaboration platforms. The rapid acceleration of the use of generative AI (GenAI) and large language models (LLMs) for an increasingly diverse range of business tasks marks yet another steep increase in ESI generated by modern organizations.

Variety
When it comes to the variety of ESI, two main challenges emerge. First, information exists in the native format of the system or application where it was created, requiring the eDiscovery process to consolidate diverse file types into a single review platform. Second, data and documents are easily edited, amended, moved, and updated—creating multiple versions of the same record that must be identified, retrieved, and reviewed.

Veracity
With ESI spread across so many systems and channels, inaccurate or incomplete data can easily surface. Modern documents carry extensive metadata—such as creation date, author, transmission history, and editing history—which helps establish accuracy and relevance but also complicates identification and review. ESI can also be deleted or spoliated, leading to heavy penalties, though traces of the original data often remain on the hard drive. Recovering that truth is possible, but typically costly and time-consuming.

Although it is theoretically possible to use a manual eDiscovery process, when faced with potentially terabytes of data in any number of formats stored in any number of internal and external systems, it is simply not practical nor desirable. Specialized eDiscovery software and processes are required to ensure that the time and costs of eDiscovery are not disproportionate to the importance and value of the matter being litigated.

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Common challenges in eDiscovery

Managing data volume, variety, and speed

Organizations handle massive amounts of data across many platforms and formats. This includes structured data from databases, unstructured data from documents and emails, and semi-structured data from social media and collaboration tools. The challenge lies not only in processing this data but in identifying and extracting relevant information efficiently.

Balancing eDiscovery with data privacy

Privacy laws like GDPR and CCPA require companies to protect personal data during the eDiscovery process. That means taking steps to secure sensitive information, following rules for data transfers across borders, and staying compliant while collecting and reviewing content.

Cost management

The costs associated with eDiscovery can be substantial—covering tech, storage, processing, and review. To keep costs down without cutting corners, organizations should use smart workflows and tools like eDiscovery AI, which help reduce manual work and limit risk while maintaining defensible processes.

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When does the eDiscovery process begin?

eDiscovery begins when litigation is reasonably anticipated and continues until digital evidence is presented in court. The process is complex, driven by the sheer volume and variety of digital information that must be identified, preserved, and produced.

As data types proliferate, ESI becomes increasingly dynamic. Preserving both original content and metadata is critical to avoid claims of spoliation or tampering later in litigation. At the same time, irrelevant data must be culled, while privileged, confidential, and personal information—subject to data privacy requirements—must be carefully protected or redacted before production.

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What is the eDiscovery Reference Model (EDRM)?

The Electronic Discovery Reference Model (EDRM) is a framework that helps organizations plan and manage their eDiscovery process.

It breaks the process into clear stages, starting with information governance (often called the “left side” of the model), and moving through steps like identifying, preserving, collecting, processing, reviewing, analyzing, producing, and presenting electronic evidence (the “right side”).

While these stages are often followed in order, the process can also be iterative and flexible. Each step builds on the one before it, helping teams stay organized, efficient, and legally defensible. Using the EDRM helps ensure a consistent approach to handling electronic evidence—while saving time and reducing costs.

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Key components of an effective eDiscovery strategy

Information governance and data management

To stay in control of electronic data, organizations need clear policies on how information is created, stored, used, and deleted. This is the foundation of eDiscovery.

Good information governance helps reduce the amount of data that needs to be reviewed during discovery, cuts storage costs, boosts efficiency, and ensures legal requirements are met.

Legal hold (or litigation hold) management

When a legal case is expected, organizations in North America must preserve any electronic information that could be relevant.

This means identifying the people (custodians) who may have that information, notifying them to keep it, and stopping any systems that might automatically delete it. Managing legal holds properly requires both the right tools and clear processes to stay compliant.

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What is eDiscovery software?

eDiscovery software helps legal, compliance, and IT teams locate, collect, review, and manage electronic information that may be used as evidence in legal matters, investigations, or regulatory requests. By automating and streamlining key steps, these solutions reduce time and complexity—making it faster and easier to find, organize, hold, review, and produce relevant data wherever it resides.

The software handles a wide range of content—emails, documents, chat messages, metadata, and more—while maintaining legal defensibility. It enables teams to search, filter, and cull large volumes of enterprise data, eliminating irrelevant information to reduce review effort and cost. The most effective eDiscovery tools go further by automating common tasks, increasing accuracy, and lowering the risk of missing critical data or inadvertently presenting confidential or privileged information.

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What are the benefits of eDiscovery software?

Depending on the size and priorities of an organization, the entire eDiscovery process, or elements of it, can be effectively handled in-house—with the right eDiscovery solutions.

Many enterprises deploy early case assessment (ECA) tools for searching, identification, culling, and processing, while reporting is becoming increasingly important for corporate legal operations teams tracking key process metrics.

A common model may include in-house collections, processing, and culling, with a legal service provider conducting the review managed by the law firm overseeing the actual litigation or compliance project itself.

However, advances in eDiscovery technology and workflows are making it possible to bring the entire process in-house, which delivers several clear benefits:

• Budget predictability
  Technology and internal staffing costs are more predictable compared to transactional and third-party project engagements.
• Empowered staff
  eDiscovery tools give staff the capabilities they need to carry out tasks without reliance on third parties.
• Litigation readiness
  Especially in sectors that are prone to a high volume of lawsuits, in-house eDiscovery ensures that companies are ready to respond quickly and facilitates the smooth running of operations.
• Faster and more accurate review
  eDiscovery solutions equipped with AI, predictive analytics, and machine learning find relevant information faster and with more accuracy than manual review.
• Meet compliance requirements
  The best eDiscovery software should come with SLAs to meet compliance requirements for specific sectors.

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What is end-to-end eDiscovery?

eDiscovery is not a single action but a series of interrelated workflows. However, the first generation of eDiscovery software was, in reality, a series of point solutions designed to address one specific aspect of the EDRM framework. This led in many cases to a patchwork of overlapping solutions and information siloes.

Today, modern platforms enable the entire eDiscovery process to be managed end-to-end within a single, integrated system. The best platforms centralize technology, workflows, and expertise—supporting every phase of discovery, from data collection and processing through analysis, review, and production—while ensuring control, scalability, flexibility, and security at every stage.

These rules can set strict deadlines, require certain types of data preservation, and specify how information should be shared. Understanding them is essential to stay compliant during the eDiscovery process.

Advanced AI and machine learning are core to end-to-end eDiscovery. Technology-assisted review (TAR), powered by continuous active learning (CAL), intelligently prioritizes the documents most likely to be relevant, accelerating review speed and improving quality—while dramatically reducing costs. TAR also provides defensibility through transparent yield curves, highlighting when the majority of relevant documents have been surfaced and further review would be disproportionate.

In recent years, cloud-based eDiscovery platforms have become increasingly popular, making it possible to upload, review, and produce information using a cloud-based solution that does not require the capital or operational expenditures associated with on-premises software solutions. The result is often lower costs and greater scale and speed. However, many legal teams and law firms either prefer or have regulatory requirements for on-premises capabilities. The best end-to-end eDiscovery platforms allow organizations to choose the cloud, on-premises, hybrid, or on-demand configuration that best suits their business needs.

Key benefits of using an end-to-end eDiscovery platform include:

End-to-end process management

Eliminate inefficiencies and unnecessary costs with integrated end-to-end technology spanning legal hold and preservation through collection, early case assessment, analysis, review, and production.

Workflow automation

Replace time-consuming, error-prone, and costly manual processes with fully automated and intelligent workflows. This enables legal teams to manage vast amounts of data while surfacing more relevant information quickly and improving the collation and review processes. Subject matter experts are now freed from the laborious information gathering and initial document review activities to focus on higher-value analysis and negotiation elements of their role.

Cost reduction

By harnessing the power of advanced AI and machine learning, eDiscovery tools reduce review costs by quickly eliminating duplicate and non-relevant documents.

Faster time to results

Streamline workflows for rapid access to potentially relevant data, allowing review teams and investigators to find the facts faster, make quicker decisions , determine case strategy, and meet often stringent deadlines—whether imposed by a court, a regulator, or agreed to with opposing counsel.

Data protection and security

Protect privileged and confidential information with multifaceted defenses at the infrastructure, application, and network layers. The best end-to-end eDiscovery solutions deliver in-platform data protection and security features and avoid data loss with cloud-based data backup and preservation. The platform provides a constant audit trail to guard against spoliation and lost information. Further, RegEx pattern detection can identify and secure sensitive personal information in compliance with data privacy laws.

Cloud scalability

Conduct end-to-end eDiscovery processes in the cloud to ensure availability and scalability while eliminating infrastructure costs and reducing in-house personnel support for time-intensive tasks.

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What are the features of eDiscovery solutions?

There are a number of key components that you’ll find in the best eDiscovery software.

• Integration with existing systems
  For the enterprise, connecting an eDiscovery solution to their existing content management system enables seamless eDiscovery at the source, minimizing risks associated with handling sensitive data.
• Integrated advanced analytics
  Keyword search and filtering on document attributes like MIME type, modified date, created date, owner, etc., are foundational tools for eDiscovery. They must be powerful, intuitive, and flexible.
• Integrated data visualizations
  Understanding the relationships between thousands of emails is a daunting task without an interactive communications map. The best eDiscovery solutions will map out sender/receiver patterns in addition to visualizing other key metadata attributes like activity over time.
• Integrated predictive coding and machine learning
  Predictive coding (otherwise known as technology-assisted review or TAR) brings AI to legal review, sweeping broad datasets and suggesting potentially relevant ESI based on prior learning. Predictive coding has been widely accepted and approved in courts around the world as a legitimate means of review.
• Integrated redaction and production capability
  Confidential or otherwise sensitive/personal data is frequent in eDiscovery. Such information needs to be redacted before being produced in an industry-standard output.

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Regulatory compliance and eDiscovery obligations

eDiscovery often overlaps with complex legal and regulatory rules that vary by location. Businesses must follow guidelines from sources like the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP), state-specific requirements, and international regulations.

These rules can set strict deadlines, require certain types of data preservation, and specify how information should be shared. Understanding them is essential to stay compliant during the eDiscovery process.

Cross-border eDiscovery

Doing business across countries adds another layer of complexity. Different regions have their own legal systems, data protection regulations, and cultural expectations. One common challenge is the conflict between U.S. discovery rules and international privacy laws.

For example, the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) places strict limitations on the transfer and processing of personal data, which can conflict with broad U.S. discovery obligations. Organizations need smart strategies to follow both sets of rules without breaking either.

Industry-specific considerations

Each industry faces its own eDiscovery hurdles. For example, healthcare providers must protect patient data under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”), while financial institutions must meet strict banking regulations. Knowing the specific rules that apply to your industry helps shape eDiscovery practices that are both compliant and effective.

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eDiscovery: A growing range of business use cases

The software and processes involved in eDiscovery are becoming increasingly transferable as greater data management and control are required in many facets of business. For instance, internal investigations share many of the characteristics of litigation when it comes to the collection and review of ESI. To oversimplify, eDiscovery is the collation and sharing of ESI during the civil litigation process. Investigations can be seen as the review and analysis of ESI to establish facts relating to a matter that may never come to litigation or are completely unrelated to the litigation process.

Investigation is a rapidly increasing area for almost every business and affects nearly every line of business. There are three main strands of investigation within a modern business:

Internal investigations

This is a broad category of investigations that covers cybersecurity, IP theft, fraud, insider threats, and HR and employee matters, to list only a few.

Regulatory and compliance

Organizations must be responsive to the ever-growing and evolving government, quasi-government, and industry regulatory environment. In addition, data protection and data privacy are growing areas with legislation such as GDPR and CCPA specifically related to subject rights requests (SRRs), including DSARs, as well as the need to respond effectively to freedom of information (FOI) requests, both of which require workflows that closely resemble eDiscovery review workflows.

Due diligence

The investigations in this category can range from pre-mergers and acquisitions to C-suite vetting to third-party contract management.

Modern ESI investigations are critically essential and intensely demanding. Still, shrinking timelines and ESI data proliferation make it increasingly difficult for investigation teams to zero in on the key facts that will reveal the true story. The latest generation of eDiscovery solutions is easily adapted to meet the needs of even the most exacting investigation.

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How has AI in eDiscovery evolved?

Over the last decade, AI in eDiscovery has come a long way. Early tools relied on basic keyword searches and simple file processing. Then came Technology-Assisted Review (TAR 1.0), also known as predictive coding, which lets legal teams train algorithms on sample documents to spot relevant information in much larger data sets—cutting down manual review time.

TAR 2.0 took things further with continuous active learning (CAL). Instead of needing all the training up front, the system learns as reviewers work—getting smarter throughout the review process.

More recently, Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) has transformed how AI supports legal work. RAG allows AI systems to pull in specific documents from a designated set and use that context to generate more accurate and relevant responses.

Now, the latest wave of innovation uses Large Language Models (LLMs) and Generative AI. These tools can understand legal concepts, extract key details from complex files, find hidden connections, and even draft early case analyses—reshaping how legal teams handle review, analysis, and preparation.

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The future of eDiscovery

Artificial intelligence and machine learning advancements

Artificial intelligence, machine learning, and large language models (LLMs) are transforming eDiscovery. These technologies are helping automate routine tasks and improve accuracy—and they’re only getting better. What’s ahead:

• Smarter predictive coding that understands context and nuance
• More natural language processing, so users can interact with systems using everyday language
• Advanced analytics to quickly spot patterns and flag critical, privileged, or responsive documents
• LLMs handling tasks like first-pass review and summarizing documents, saving time and cost

The shift to cloud-based eDiscovery

Cloud-based platforms will likely become the norm for eDiscovery, providing organizations with greater flexibility and scalability. They offer:

• Lower infrastructure and maintenance costs
• Easy access for remote teams
• Better disaster recovery and business continuity
• Stronger security and frequent updates

Integration with information governance

eDiscovery will become more connected with information governance tools, making it easier to manage data proactively. This could include:

• Automatically classifying documents as they’re created
• Real-time compliance tracking
• Smoother data retention and deletion processes

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Best practices for implementing eDiscovery solutions

Building a cross-functional eDiscovery team

Effective eDiscovery depends on strong collaboration between legal, IT, and business units. Defining clear roles and responsibilities ensures everyone understands their part. This teamwork helps align technical capabilities with legal needs and overall business goals.

Creating standardized processes

Organizations should develop clear, documented procedures for managing electronic data—from initial preservation to final production. These workflows should include quality checks and chain of custody documentation to protect the integrity of the evidence.

Ongoing training and education

Since both technology and legal rules are constantly changing, regular training is essential. Team members need to stay current on how to use eDiscovery tools and meet legal obligations for handling digital evidence.

Tracking and improving performance

To keep eDiscovery efficient and effective, organizations should track key metrics—like how long it takes to process data, review speeds, accuracy in production, and overall cost per case. Regularly reviewing these metrics helps identify areas to improve and show value to stakeholders.

Managing risk and insurance coverage

It’s important to understand how your insurance covers eDiscovery-related risks. This includes checking if your cyber insurance applies to breaches that require discovery and exploring policies specifically designed to offset the costs of large-scale eDiscovery efforts.

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Frequently asked questions about eDiscovery

How much does eDiscovery typically cost?

eDiscovery costs vary widely based on data volume, case complexity, and the tools used. Expenses include direct costs like software licenses, storage, and processing fees and indirect costs such as staff time, training, and infrastructure.

Many organizations find that investing in robust eDiscovery solutions can lead to significant cost savings over time through improved efficiency and reduced outside counsel fees. Efficient tools reduce manual work, speed up processes, and lower outside counsel fees. Choosing user-friendly platforms that don't require extensive certification and come with expert support can also help keep costs down.

What are the consequences of inadequate eDiscovery practices?

Poor eDiscovery practices can result in serious risks, including:

• Court sanctions or financial penalties
• Instructions to juries that assume missing data would have been harmful
• Reputational damage
• Higher litigation costs
• In severe cases, potential criminal penalties

How can organizations prepare for eDiscovery before litigation occurs?

Being proactive is key. Preparation should include:

• Creating strong information governance policies
• Setting up and testing legal hold procedures
• Training staff on how to manage and protect data
• Building relationships with reliable eDiscovery vendors
• Regularly updating tools and processes to keep up with changing legal and tech standards

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Why do you need an eDiscovery solution?

Put succinctly, competency in eDiscovery is now a necessity of modern civil litigation practice. It is virtually impossible to achieve manually, especially where cost and time are significant factors. The only way to effectively meet professional and legal obligations in an increasingly digitally complex world is through an advanced, AI-driven end-to-end eDiscovery platform.

It’s not just that it is more efficient and cost-effective to leverage technology. In civil litigation matters, courts may impose fines and/or sanctions if an organization and its counsel can’t effectively manage and produce its data.

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The role of OpenText in eDiscovery solutions

OpenText’s smart, legal platform is a flexible, AI-powered solution designed to support every phase of the eDiscovery process. It combines advanced technology with expert services to help legal teams work more efficiently, manage risk, and meet legal and regulatory obligations with confidence.

Whether deployed on-premises, in the cloud, or in a hybrid model, the platform is built to handle any type of data, at any speed, from anywhere—delivering reliable, end-to-end support across the full eDiscovery lifecycle.

With OpenText, legal teams can:

• Defensibly collect, preserve, and process electronically stored information (ESI), including through forensic methods when needed.
• Quickly uncover key facts to support litigation and investigations.
• Automate workflows to reduce risk and improve accuracy.
• Accelerate document review with advanced analytics, multiple TAR workflow options, and generative AI.
• Gain full visibility and control through integrated, scalable eDiscovery capabilities.

Identification, collection and early case assessment (ECA)

On the left side of the EDRM, OpenText eDiscovery takes care of critical early-stage tasks like enterprise search, data collection, and processing.

Its powerful search tools help teams quickly find and collect relevant information from across systems. Thanks to a distributed architecture, the platform can gather data at the same time from multiple sources—email servers, network drives, cloud storage, and local devices—while keeping a detailed chain of custody.

It can also process hundreds of file types, including complex ones like PSTs and ZIP files, without altering the original data.

Advanced filtering and analysis tools let legal teams zero in on what matters—excluding irrelevant or privileged content. This early case assessment helps teams understand what they’re dealing with from the start, leading to smarter strategies and more accurate budgeting.

Advanced analytics and review

OpenText eDiscovery also simplifies and strengthens document review and analysis through advanced analytics, machine learning, and OpenText eDiscovery Aviator GenAI capabilities.

Legal teams can choose from multiple Technology-Assisted Review (TAR) workflows to prioritize documents based on relevance—speeding up review, improving accuracy, and reducing costs.

Visual analytics help reviewers quickly spot patterns and relationships within large data sets, while built-in quality control tools ensure consistency across review teams.

The platform also supports native audio and video file review, allowing users to search, view, analyze, and redact multimedia files and transcripts—without ever leaving the platform interface.

When it’s time to produce documents, OpenText makes it easy to create litigation-ready deliverables in various formats. The platform supports customizable Bates numbering, confidentiality branding, privilege log automation, and load file creation for all major review tools—ensuring compliance with court-mandated standards.

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