Artificial Intelligence to Antitrust

The Shifting E-Discovery Landscape: From Artificial Intelligence to Antitrust

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[Editor’s Note: This article has been republished with permission. It was originally published in American Lawyer Media’s Cybersecurity Law & Strategy newsletter on January 15, 2025]

The rapid evolution of e-discovery presents both opportunities and challenges for e-discovery teams. Almost half (49%) of the participants in the 2024 E-Discovery Unfiltered report expected the number of litigation matters to increase, while more than a third (34%) expected it to remain the same. 83% expected their outside providers to have sufficient skill in handling most data types. And 71% noted that the amount of data in a typical case has increased in the past year.

As organizations enhance their processes and infrastructure, the expectation to leverage technology to maximize service delivery increases. However, legal professionals must balance innovation with humanity. That was the consensus of a recent webinar for ACEDS, which you can watch here.

“The better that technology gets and the more work it can do, the more important the human skills of curiosity, empathy, and communicating become because we are tasked with translating for the tools and optimizing workflows,” said Joey Seeber, CEO of Level Legal.

Client Service in E-Discovery

In e-discovery, providing exceptional client service remains a cornerstone of success. Demonstrating curiosity, anticipating client needs, and finding ways to delight clients will continue to be invaluable traits for professionals in 2025. Human skills, personality, and creativity will remain paramount as technology advances. “We are looking for team members who can relate to and delight our clients by providing something unexpected and memorable,” advised Seeber.

Understanding a client enhances a professional’s ability to negotiate effective ESI protocols, develop productive workflows, and adapt to complex case requirements. It also streamlines discussions around privilege log modifications and document review protocols.

Antitrust and Engaging with Regulators

After all, e-discovery projects are inherently challenging, especially when negotiating with regulators, who are becoming increasingly savvy experts in this area. As a result, legal teams must study administrative leaders’ decision-making history and appointment details in combination with the caselaw.

In the highly competitive field of antitrust, relationships with regulators are vital and can yield a significant competitive advantage. Understanding the nuances of these interactions is crucial for law firms, particularly as they monitor new Hart-Scott-Rodino rules. “Antitrust is an exceedingly competitive practice area, so leading practitioners align relationships, knowledge, technology, and a deep bench,” said Harsha Kurpad, Antitrust eDiscovery Counsel at Latham and Watkins.

The sector is also entering an exciting and dynamic era marked by new leadership. “We are in a fascinating and interesting time as it relates to antitrust because of the pending change in the administration,” Kurpad added.

Deploying AI in Litigation

Artificial intelligence continues to reshape the parameters of e-discovery to better manage the accelerated pace of antitrust litigation. In the 2024 E-Discovery Unfiltered report, 72% of the participants reported leveraging AI in their matters.

While the use cases remain limited, the adoption of generative AI is expected to expand in 2025, mainly for summarizing information, identifying privileged documents, generating privilege logs, and assisting with translations and chronologies. This shift is driving the need for practitioners to master the basics and implement these tools thoughtfully.  “Many of my peers are using generative AI tools to create privilege logs and identify hot documents, but we are just at the tip of that iceberg. I suspect one of the big trends in 2025 will be increased adoption,” noted Kurpad.

Looking Ahead to E-Discovery in 2025

As e-discovery evolves, practitioners must continue to distinguish their approach and allocate a portion of their budgets for unexpected opportunities—such as innovative hires or emerging tools. Continuous learning remains a vital component of professional growth. Curiosity leads to understanding and fosters resilience in adapting to new challenges. Embracing new experiences, anticipating potential issues, and setting clear expectations can help e-discovery teams thrive. “The best way to prepare for uncertainty is to have reps and understand that each engagement is different,” said Seeber.

Reflecting on lessons from 2024, knowing when to pivot will be a powerful asset for the year ahead. Building empathy, fostering friendly interactions, and maintaining a strategic mindset will position professionals and their organizations for success in 2025 and beyond. Still, there is no substitute for honing your fundamental skills. “The essence of what we do today will remain very much the same in 2025, so legal teams should focus on being very good at the basics,” offered Kurpad.

Ari Kaplan on Email
Ari Kaplan
Ari Kaplan, an attorney and legal industry analyst, is an inaugural Fastcase 50 honoree, a fellow of the College of Law Practice Management, and a finalist for the International Legal Technology Association’s Thought Leader of the Year award. He is the author of Reinventing Professional Services: Building Your Business in the Digital Marketplace (Wiley, 2011) and The Opportunity Maker: Strategies for Inspiring Your Legal Career Through Creative Networking and Business Development (West Academic, 2nd Ed. 2016). Kaplan serves as the principal researcher for a variety of widely distributed benchmarking reports, has been the keynote speaker for events worldwide, and is the founder of the Lawcountability® business development platform. He is also a two-time Ironman triathlon finisher.

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