GIVE ME A BREAK!

The document review has started and you have decided to image the documents. The first question to answer is how you want to retrieve the materials once they have been processed.

Physical Breaks: When instructed to process by physical breaks, the vendor is removed from the equation on deciding what makes up a document. Actually, all brain power is removed from the process. All documents are broken based on the location of a staple, paper or binder clip. Consider your own files. How often are the paper clips, staples and binder clips logically placed to capture document association? Now consider documents that are generations old, or who have been the subject of other productions. Sometimes a document is clipped, because the mail room sent it to you that way. By instructing to follow physical breaks, the documents are generally clumped and tracked in an unreasonable, inefficient matter. If the goal is to provide the documents as maintained, you can still provide the order and format of documents, without committing to senseless organization. ( i.e. 40 letters stapled as one, are entered as one record). If your hesitation is that the vendor won't know how to do it right, then you need to pick a different vendor.

Logical Breaks: Thought and consideration goes into a logical break project. This system, when done with the right vendor, will give you a database load file that can easily be coded. Letters with twelve pages comprehensively hold the twelve pages. If the first eleven pages are stapled, and the twelfth page has come loose, it will still be scanned as one, twelve-page document. Records of Decision - that are 1,000's of pages are grouped as one, and not dozens of separate documents. Knowledge of document types and the role they play in litigation can be instrumental in cutting costs drastically. In the ROD example, if you don't realize the ROD is one document, coding them all separately will be costly, not to mention the retrieval nightmare that has been created for the life of the case.

Midwest has re-unitized thousands of pages because a physical break instruction was given to the original vendor. No one was required to think when the materials were scanned, and the database reflects it.

It takes time, and consideration and trust in the staff that is processing or the vendor that is handling. If done right, there is a significant return on the investment of time.

COST SAVINGS FORGOTTEN

Consider it: Midwest completed a document production of 179,055 pages in 2004 for a client. The related cost to scan the original set was $30,400.

Midwest was asked to now produce five sets of the same production, due to the addition of parties to the case. If the client had done a paper to paper production, the cost to recreate would have been $89,527.50 (assuming a cost break to .10 per page). This does not include the turnaround time, shipping costs or shelving. Because the client scanned the documents, the production to recreate five complete sets was the cost of the CD burn; $1,750. The project shipped within 12 hours of the request.

FIELD OF DREAMS

Field identifiers are a great resource when processing documents from a production. Understand that most imaging software can populate up to 100 fields at the scanning stage. This eliminates your need to hand key repetitive information into fields, and gives you a useful database on day one.

Sometimes simply identifying the source of a production, box number and file folder label, can get you to a chunk of documents that contain information you need. It builds an "index" for you. It is not nearly as complete as page by page coding, but it helps to minimize the universe of documents you need to check while the database is constructed. As an attorney, when you need the "Smith File" doing a search for this subset can usually get you close enough to what you need, a godsend when your database is holding the equivalent of fifty boxes.

If your in-house staff doesn't offer the resource - ask. It will save you and the client a great deal of time and money.

BALANCING PRACTICE STYLES

"I Don't Understand the Benefit of Databases"
"I believe an Attorney Needs to KNOW their Documents"

If this is your mind set - you are not alone. As the technology age envelopes us all, many attorneys continue to practice with paper and pen rather then mouse and keyboard. That doesn't mean that you need to refuse the universe of technology resources - when a tiny piece may be of help.

The IT staff at Midwest has many software tools to process paper documents and provide you with a work set that a paper/pen/war room attorney can utilize. Stop and consider that Midwest Imaging continues to make as much money on the paper printing we do, as the documents we image. It is all about the individual comfort levels. If you want to keep the paper; surround yourself with paper because that is how you practice - have at it. I have been stunned more then once by the capacity attorneys have to memorize their case files. The experienced paralegals at Midwest can assist in setting up paper retrieval systems. We can mix a minimum of technology tools or utilize none at all. Midwest can follow your lead, or provide guidance when requested. Computer support should be a win win for those involved. Balancing practice styles between paralegal/attorney or attorney/attorney makes for a more positive result for the client.