Electronic data in the evidence gathering process is becoming more and more common place, as parties to a dispute realise the extent of electronic information which is generated in day to day business activities. Failure to examine electronic evidence as part of a dispute is failure to examine large volumes of evidence which can support the claims of disputing parties. The process of gathering and analysing electronic evidence works two ways, in terms of providing and receiving.

Respective regulations have not yet appeared in many jurisdictions, but the mechanism of mandatory disclosure of electronic data has been in place for years in countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States.

Although many alternative disputes resolution organisations do not specifically address the matter of electronic evidence, it is now becoming an important part of the arbitration process. The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe issued guidelines on electronic evidence in civil and administrative proceedings, stating “Electronic evidence should be evaluated in the same way as other types of evidence, in particular regarding its admissibility, authenticity, accuracy and integrity”.

Our many years of investigative experience and in-depth knowledge of computer forensics tools allow us to effectively and efficiently support clients and counsel in the field of obtaining, filtering and sharing electronic data.

We use specialized eDiscovery software from leading global producers (e.g. Relativity, Intella) which enables effective filtering of electronic data based on many criteria, editing it to the extent required and exporting data in a format compatible with popular eDiscovery platforms used by lawyers.

In 2023 we became the first Polish and Central European partner of Relativity.

We support our clients in the following areas:

We offer the following support for Clients and counsel where electronic data is requested and must be released to an opponent in a dispute:

• Support in professional data capture for the purpose of potential future sharing with an opponent. See also "Electronic data capture"
• Support in negotiations with an opponent as to the details of the data that should be shared, in particular to determine the criteria for selecting the data and to agree technical issues (e.g. data export format etc.);
• Initial data filtering in accordance with the criteria agreed with an opponent;
• Providing access to a web-based data review platform for verification of pre-filtered data and its potential redaction before releasing to an opponent;
• Export of data in a format agreed with an opponent.

Our support for Clients and counsel receiving electronic data through the eDisclosure process is largely consistent with our support described for eDiscovery services.