Extract from Doug Austin’s article “Commentary on Privilege Logs from The Sedona Conference: eDiscovery Trends”
Last Friday, The Sedona Conference® (TSC) announced the post public-comment version of its Commentary on Privilege Logs.
The Commentary on Privilege Logs, available here for free download and created by the TSC Working Group 1 on Electronic Document Retention and Production (WG1), offers tools and strategies for both responding and requesting parties to mitigate the considerable burdens and competing interests that can be associated with privilege logs.
Its primary conclusions include addressing format, timing, and anticipated issues early in the case to help reduce costly discovery disputes later; excluding certain categories of documents from the logging process; considering whether alternative formats to a “traditional” privilege log might be appropriate to the specific needs of the case; affirming that the burden is on the responding party to support its privilege claims; and recognizing that the concept of proportionality is integral to the privilege logging process.
The Commentary’s appendices include examples of various privilege log formats along with sample documents that appear on the logs.
