How do you effectively review a document?

The initial search for documents typically yields a surplus of potentially relevant documents. A document reviewer must go through all potential sources of evidence and separate what should and should not be disclosed.

During the initial stages of a document reviewer process, the original batch of search results is reviewed and usually split into two parts - responsive documents (i.e., relevant) and non-responsive (i.e., not relevant) documents.

Irrelevant documents are withheld, while relevant documents move on to the next stage to determine if privilege or confidentiality rules apply.

Differences between privileged and confidentiality documents include:

• Privileged - Parties are not obligated to disclose documents subject to attorney-client privilege, the work-product doctrine, or other rules and laws relating to privacy and confidentiality.

• Confidentiality - Outside of legal confidentiality limitations, parties are also not obligated to disclose documents that reveal trade secrets or confidential/proprietary information.

If a responsive document turns out to contain privileged or confidential information, that document should not be disclosed. If privilege or confidentiality-related rules do not apply, the document must be produced. The next step is to determine whether or not the privileged or confidential information can be redacted or not.

If the privileged or confidential information can be redacted, then the information must be withheld while the rest of the document is left intact. From this, the document must be marked as 'redacted' and disclosed.

In cases where redaction isn't feasible, then the document should be marked as 'privileged' and be withheld. Proper redaction is critical to ensure privilege and confidentiality remain protected to avoid any potential damage.