Four Ways a SaaS Solution Can Make In-House Counsel Life Easier

Your team is facing a wall of mounting compliance requirements and internal investigations, as well as a few larger litigations you fear you may not be able to handle given internal resource constraints. Each case involves unwieldy amounts of data to wade through, and that data must be collected from constantly-evolving data sources—from iPhones to Microsoft Teams to Skype chats. You’re working with your IT team to ensure your company’s most sensitive data is protected throughout the course of all those matters.

All of this considered, your team is faced with vetting eDiscovery vendors to handle the large litigation matters and ensuring those vendors can effectively protect your company’s data. Simultaneously, you are shouldering the burden of hosting a separate eDiscovery platform for internal investigations with a legal budget that is already stretched thin.

Does this sound familiar? Welcome to the life of a modern in-house attorney.

Now more than ever, in-house counsel need to identify cost-effective ways to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of their eDiscovery matters and investigations with attention to the security of their company’s data.

This is where adopting a cloud-based self-service eDiscovery platform can help. Below, I’ve outlined how moving to this type of model can ease many of the burdens faced by corporate legal departments.

1. The Added Benefit of On-Demand Scalability‍

A cloud-based, self-service platform provides your team the ability to quickly transfer case data into a cutting-edge review platform and access it from any web browser. You’re no longer waiting days for a vendor to take on the task with no insight into when the data will be ready.

With a self-service solution, your team holds the reigns and can make strategic decisions based on what works best for your budget and organization. If your team has the bandwidth to handle smaller internal investigations but needs help handling large litigations, a scalable self-service model can provide that solution. If you want your team to handle all matters, large and small, but you worry about collecting from unique sources like Microsoft Teams or need help defensibly culling a large amount of data in a particular case, a quality self-service provider can handle those issues and leave the rest to you. In short, a self-service solution gives you the ability to control your own fate and leverage the eDiscovery tools and expertise you need, when you need them.

2. Access to the Best eDiscovery Tools – Without the Overhead Costs 

A robust self-service eDiscovery solution gives your team access to the industry’s best eDiscovery tools, enabling you to achieve the best outcome on every matter for the most efficient cost. Whether you want to analyze your organization’s entire legal portfolio to see where you can improve review efficiency across matters, or you simply want to leverage the best tools from collection to production, the right solution will deliver.

And with a self-service model, your team will have access to these tools without the burden of infrastructure maintenance or software licensing. A quality self-service provider will shoulder these costs, as well as the load of continuously evaluating and updating technology. Your team is free to do what it is does best: legal work.

3. The Peace of Mind of Reliable Data Security 

In a self-service eDiscovery model, your service provider shoulders the data security risk with state-of-the-art infrastructure and dedicated IT and security teams capable of remaining attentive to cybersecurity threats and evolving regulatory standards. This not only allows you to lower your own costs and free up valuable internal IT resources, but also provides something even more valuable than cost savings—the peace of mind that comes with knowing your company’s data is being managed and protected by IT experts.

4. Flexible, Predictable Pricing and Lower Overall Costs

Self-service pricing models can be designed around your team’s expectations for utilization—meaning you can select a pricing structure that fits your organization’s unique needs. From pay-as-you-go models to a subscription-based approach, self-service pricing often differs from traditional eDiscovery pricing in that it is clear and predictable. This means you won’t be blindsided at the close of the month with hidden charges or unexpected hourly fees from a law firm or vendor. Add this type of transparent pricing to the fact that you will no longer be shouldering technology costs or paying for vendor services you don’t need, and the result is a significantly lower eDiscovery overhead that can fit within any legal budget.

These four benefits can help corporations and in-house counsel teams significantly improve eDiscovery efficiency and reduce costs. For more information on how to move your organization to a self-service eDiscovery model, be sure to check out our other articles related to the self-service eDiscovery revolution – including tips for overcoming self-service objections and building a self-service business case.