Tue. Mar 19th, 2024

Content Assessment: A 2022 Look at eDiscovery Review: Task, Spend, and Cost Data Points

Information - 94%
Insight - 93%
Relevance - 92%
Objectivity - 93%
Authority - 95%

93%

Excellent

A short percentage-based assessment of the qualitative benefit of the post highlighting ComplexDiscovery research on the eDiscovery task of reviewing electronically stored information.

Editor’s Note: Originally published in June 2019 and updated annually, this report on eDiscovery review task, spending, and cost information contains new data points based on recent refreshes of industry research from ComplexDiscovery. This update includes information from the 2022-2027 eDiscovery Market Size Mashup for Worldwide Software and Services and the most recent eDiscovery pricing survey conducted in December 2022. This update may be beneficial for legal, business, and IT professionals considering the business of eDiscovery and specifically the economics of eDiscovery review. To submit recommendations for consideration in ComplexDiscovery research, contact us today.


Industry Research

A 2022 Look at eDiscovery Review: The Task

Market Size and Pricing Considerations

Within the context of data discovery and legal discovery, the task of review consists of the evaluation of digital information to identify relevant and responsive documents to produce, and privileged documents or confidential or sensitive information to withhold. It is one of three tasks, that along with collection and processing, make up the core tasks typically associated with the process of eDiscovery.

In considering the relative costs of the three core eDiscovery tasks of collection, processing, and review, in 2012, review represented approximately 73% of the total expenditure for eDiscovery tasks, with collection representing 8% of expenditures and processing representing 19% of expenditures. (1) Based on market modeling since 2012, the relative costs of these core eDiscovery tasks in 2022 are estimated to be 66% of expenditures for review, with collection representing 15% of expenditures, and processing representing 19% of expenditures. (2)

Chart 1: Relative Task Expenditures for eDiscovery

Relative Task Expenditures for Core eDiscovery Tasks - Review - 2023

Market Opportunity for Review: The Spend

In evaluating the market spend for the eDiscovery task of review through the lens of relative task expenditures and modeled market estimations, spending on review-related software and services is estimated to constitute approximately 66% ($9.27B) of worldwide eDiscovery software and services spending in 2022. While the percentage of spending for the eDiscovery task of review is estimated to decrease slightly to approximately 61% of overall eDiscovery spending through 2027, the spend in dollars for eDiscovery review is estimated to grow to $13.61B by 2027. (3)

Chart 2: eDiscovery Market for Review

eDiscovery Market for Review (2022-2027) - 2023

Review Pricing Data Points: The Cost

While many individual elements contribute to the cost of review, results from semi-annual eDiscovery Pricing Surveys (4) may provide insight into key costs and cost trends related to the eDiscovery task of review. These costs include the per GB cost to conduct predictive coding as part of technology-assisted review during the document review phase of eDiscovery, the cost per hour for document review attorneys to review documents during the review phase of eDiscovery, and the cost per document for document review attorneys to review documents during the review phase of eDiscovery.

Responses from the most recent semi-annual eDiscovery pricing survey regarding these review-related cost questions posed to cybersecurity, information governance, and legal discovery professionals are provided below for your consideration.


Chart 3: What is the per GB cost to conduct predictive coding as part of a technology-assisted review for 250 GB or less?

Review Pricing - Per GB Cost for Predictive Coding in a Technology-Assisted Review for 250 GB or Less - Winter 2023

Chart 4: What is the per GB cost to conduct predictive coding as part of a technology-assisted review for 251 GB or more?

Review Pricing - Per GB Cost for Predictive Coding in a Technology-Assisted Review for 251 GB or More - Winter 2023

Chart 5: What is the cost per hour for document review attorneys to review documents for an onsite managed review?

Review Pricing - Per Hour Cost for Document Review Attorneys to Review Documents Onsite - Winter 2023

Chart 6: What is the cost per hour for document review attorneys to review documents for a remote managed review?

Review Pricing - Per Hour Cost for Document Review Attorneys to Review Documents Remote - Winter 2023

Char 7: What is the cost per document for document review attorneys to review documents for an onsite managed review?

Review Pricing - Per Document Cost for Document Review Attorneys to Review Documents Onsite - 2023

Chart 8: What is the cost per document for document review attorneys to review documents for a remote managed review?

Review Pricing - Per Document Cost for Document Review Attorneys to Review Documents Remote - 2023

References

(1) Pace, N., & Zakaras, L. (2012). Where the Money Goes: Understanding Litigant Expenditures for Producing Electronic Discovery (p. xiv, xv). RAND Institute for Civil Justice.

(2) Robinson, R. (2022). An eDiscovery Market Size Mashup: Worldwide Software and Services Overview – 2022-2027. Retrieved from https://complexdiscovery.com/an-ediscovery-market-size-mashup-2022-2027-worldwide-software-and-services-overview-2/

(3) Ibid.

(4) Robinson, R. (2022). Adaptation and Stratification? Winter 2023 eDiscovery Pricing Survey Results. Retrieved from https://complexdiscovery.com/adaptation-and-stratification-winter-2023-ediscovery-pricing-survey-results/.

Additional Research

Additional Reading

Source: ComplexDiscovery

 

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