The collection methodology for acquiring ESI in litigation matters, governmental inquiries, and internal investigations in a legally defensible manner.
* Although represented as a linear workflow, moving from left to right, this process is often iterative. The feedback loops have been omitted from the diagram for graphic simplicity.
Introduction
Collection is the acquisition of potentially relevant electronically stored information (ESI) as defined in the identification phase of the electronic discovery process. The exigencies of litigation, governmental inquiries, and internal investigations generally require that ESI and its associated metadata should be collected in a manner that is legally defensible, proportionate, efficient, auditable, and targeted. The process of collecting ESI will generally provide feedback to the identification function which may impact and expand the scope of the overall electronic discovery process.