Lowering the Cost of Litigation Will be Driven by Increased Adoption of Powerful New eDiscovery Tools in 2010

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- CT Summation, part of CT, a Wolters Kluwer business, the premier provider of litigation workflow and eDiscovery solutions, today announced the key trends that will impact the eDiscovery market in 2010.  Both law firms and corporations will look to minimize legal spend and risk exposure this year by continuing to leverage technology solutions that enable significant cost efficiencies and enhance risk management capabilities.  

The legal services industry is currently undergoing a significant transformation as the cost of eDiscovery comes under unprecedented scrutiny.  With the market landscape changing, corporations and law firms of all sizes are looking for alternative cost-containment options that will enhance processes already in place.  This year will see many of these organizations align themselves with strategic technology solutions that not only help manage the cost of litigation and regulatory investigation more effectively but also streamline critical processes and help reduce risk.  This overarching trend will be driven by the availability of technology that allows for more detailed case assessment at every stage of the discovery process, new found techniques to advantageously categorize data and the ability to manage a case from end-to-end using a unified, standard technology platform.

Preparing for another year of strong growth, CT Summation anticipates the following key trends to impact the eDiscovery market in 2010:

• Increased Reliance on Trusted eDiscovery Tools: "Art vs. Science":  Attorneys will use eDiscovery technology to make critical case data work for them in ways that can help expedite the discovery processing while reducing costs.  Utilizing technology solutions to manage this data for their unique needs will help create optimal efficiencies for attorneys this year and beyond.
• Increased Visibility to Case Data from Collection to Production:  Early access to case data will become increasingly prominent in 2010 as it contains legal costs by removing unnecessary documents prior to review.  Reducing the scope of discovery dramatically, early case assessment can help litigators eliminate the often-costly review cycle and help shape legal strategy at early stages of the discovery process.
• Standardizing On Uniform Solutions:  With a focus on reducing the cost of litigation, corporate legal departments and law firms will seek to align themselves with technology solutions that help manage the multiple parts of the eDiscovery process on a single platform or product suite.  However, there will be a continued need for specialized solutions, forcing vendors to stay true to their core competency while providing increased interoperability utilizing the EDRM XML standard.
• Emergence of the New Power Boutique:  Last year saw the creation of many boutique law firms as larger firms were forced to significantly downsize.  To be competitive in 2010, these smaller firms, comprised of former big-firm attorneys, will elect to outsource technology solutions that they know and trust to contain costs and quickly create a sustainable eDiscovery infrastructure.  Selecting the right solution for their unique needs will be paramount to success.

"2009 was a year of critical importance to CT Summation as we re-wrote our strategic play book, making an array of key product enhancements and strategic partnerships that position us well to help customers with cost and risk containment in 2010," said Tom Rump, general manager, CT Summation.  "We look forward to continue working closely with our customers to ensure our dynamic technology solutions are evolving to meet their unique needs."

About CT Summation

CT Summation is the premier provider of litigation support and eDiscovery solutions that help legal professionals succeed from discovery to case review and analysis through production.  From desktop and server applications to hosted solutions, CT Summation combines a set of award-winning technology solutions (iBlaze, WebBlaze, Enterprise, CaseVault, Discovery Cracker and CaseVantage) with market-leading expertise that provide the decisive advantage for law firms and legal departments, large or small.  For more information, please visit www.ctsummation.com.

CT, a Wolters Kluwer business, provides the tools to help legal and financial professionals manage risk on many levels.  From managing corporate compliance to legal department performance; trademark protection to matter management; electronic data discovery to preparing cases for litigation, CT has the right solution to meet a host of needs.  CT is based in New York City.  For more information, please visit www.ctlegalsolutions.com.

About Wolters Kluwer

Wolters Kluwer is a leading global information services and publishing company.  The company provides products and services for professionals in the health, tax, accounting, corporate, financial services, legal and regulatory sectors.  Wolters Kluwer had 2008 annual revenues of euro 3.4 billion, employs approximately 20,000 people worldwide and maintains operations in over 35 countries across Europe, North America, Asia Pacific and Latin America.  Wolters Kluwer is headquartered in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands.  Its shares are quoted on Euronext Amsterdam (WKL) and are included in the AEX and Euronext 100 indices.  Visit www.wolterskluwer.com for information about our market positions, customers, brands and organization.

SOURCE CT Summation