GigaOm Key Criteria for Evaluating E-Discovery Solutionsv3.0

1. Executive Summary

Electronic discovery (e-discovery) can be defined as the discovery, for use in legal proceedings, of electronically stored information (ESI), which now goes far beyond traditional data such as documents, emails, drawings, faxes, and correspondence to encompass video, audio, photographs, social media posts, web pages, and other internet-based content. It can also include video surveillance material, phone call audio files, and video conference data. Moreover, new and emerging channels are being introduced on a regular basis, so e-discovery solutions must be future-proofed to support new channels and formats as they emerge. They must also be able to bring together all of these different types of content for review.

E-discovery solutions generally follow the electronic discovery reference model (EDRM), which lays down a logical framework for e-discovery. This is used by vendors when developing their products and by enterprises when planning e-discovery projects. The EDRM has multiple stages, and although it follows a linear path from start to finish, most of the stages are iterative, and enterprises can move backward as well as forward through the stages. E-discovery products that follow the EDRM should provide all of the capabilities required to manage the e-discovery process regardless of the scope of the matter. These can include data governance, retention, protection, replication, and secure deletion of nonprotected content. The system should be configurable to consume data in a nonrepudiated form with a full chain of custody.

Any data that may be required for any current or future discovery needs may require a legal hold to be applied to enable replicating and protection from deletion. Once data is no longer needed, it must be securely erased following appropriate governance policies. In addition to protecting the data, the system must also make it searchable and easy for legal staff to use, providing the ability to redact content not required in the legal discovery process.

The e-discovery market is mature, with the majority of vendors well-established. There is some consolidation as a small number of vendors acquire competitors to strengthen their capabilities in previously weak areas. This is evident in cases where vendors are expanding their capabilities from supporting half of the EDRM to providing end-to-end capabilities.

Business Imperative
E-discovery has become increasingly important over the past few years, as companies and individuals have become more litigious and increasing legislation and resulting regulations around the world dictate that digital data should be discoverable.

With data volumes growing exponentially and comprising much of the evidence in litigation and other discovery requests, it has become impossible to address those requests using standard software such as search tools. Discovery can involve finding the proverbial needle in the haystack, often searching millions of items of content to find a single file or small group of them, so specialized e-discovery tools have become a “must-have” for enterprises handling discovery requests.

Sector Adoption Score
To help executives and decision-makers assess the potential impact and value of an e-discovery solution deployment to the business, this GigaOm Key Criteria report provides a structured assessment of the sector across five factors: benefit, maturity, urgency, impact, and effort. By scoring each factor based on how strongly it compels or deters adoption of an e-discovery solution, we provide an overall Sector Adoption Score (Figure 1) of 4.4 out of 5, with 5 indicating the strongest possible recommendation to adopt. This indicates that an e-discovery solution is a credible candidate for deployment and worthy of thoughtful consideration.

The factors contributing to the Sector Adoption Score for e-discovery are explained in more detail in the Sector Brief section that follows.

Figure 1. Sector Adoption Score for E-Discovery

This is the third year that GigaOm has reported on the e-discovery space in the context of our Key Criteria and Radar reports. This report builds on our previous analysis and considers how the market has evolved over the last year.

This GigaOm Key Criteria report highlights the capabilities (table stakes, key features, and emerging features) and nonfunctional requirements (business criteria) for selecting an effective e-discovery solution. The companion GigaOm Radar report identifies vendors and products that excel in those decision criteria. Together, these reports provide an overview of the market, identify leading e-discovery offerings, and help decision-makers evaluate these solutions so they can make a more informed investment decision.