EDRM’s Technology Assisted Review (TAR) Guidelines aim to objectively define and explain technology-assisted review for members of the judiciary and the legal profession. The document aims to provide a wide audience with an authoritative and clear understanding of the reasons to use technology-assisted review, known as TAR, in litigation, and the processes by which TAR works.
More than 50 volunteer judges, practitioners, and e-discovery experts contributed to the drafting process over a two-year period. Three drafting teams worked on various iterations of the document, led by Matt Poplawski of Winston & Strawn, Mike Quartararo of eDPM Advisory Services, and Adam Strayer of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. Tim Opsitnick of TCDI and U.S. Magistrate Judge James Francis IV (Southern District of New York, Ret.), assisted in editing the document and incorporating comments from a public review period.
The 50-page document contains four chapters: The first chapter defines technology assisted review and the TAR process. The second chapter lays out a standard workflow for the TAR process. The third chapter examines alternative tasks for applying TAR, including prioritization, categorization, privilege review, and quality and quantity control. Chapter four discusses factors to consider when deciding whether to use TAR, such as document set, cost, timing, and jurisdiction.