Management of Client Litigation Documents

CLIENT DOCUMENTS AND INFORMATION
PROVIDED TO ATTORNEY
please read carefully - this could have a significant financial impact on costs in your case

Organization, dissemination and disclosure of documentation sounds like a simple concept. Getting the documentation needed to prepare a litigation case and file organization to provide effective representation can be a difficult process for any law office. Documents supporting litigation disclosure or discovery or can be voluminous. Photographic, audio or video materials may also be relevant in any case. Management of client documents or discovery materials has a direct impact upon billable fees and costs as well as effectiveness of attorney representation.

At the outset of a case, attorneys and the court do not know anything about any given case. Documentation aids counsel's understanding the nature of facts and charges in a criminal case, about family dynamics and family finances in divorces * adoption * paternity cases, or debt structure and debtor solvency for levy in collection cases. Your attorney can not adequately prepare your case absent appropriate documentation procured from the client or discovered from opposing counsel. Disclosure court rules apply in all litigation cases.

1. In criminal and traffic cases, Colorado Rules of Criminal Procedure 16 mandates disclosure of specified documents or materials. Sanctions will be imposed in the event of non-compliance. Sanctions can include rejection or exclusion of exhibits, witnesses or defenses.

2. In family law cases, Colorado Rules of Civil Procedure 16.2 mandates disclosure of specified documents or materials. Sanctions will be imposed in the event of non-compliance. Sanctions can include rejection or exclusion of exhibits and witnesses and perhaps may include award of attorney’s fees and costs to your spouse or opposing birth parent, or perhaps dismissal of your court case or judgment in favor of the opposition.

3. In civil law cases, Colorado Rules of Civil Procedure 16 mandates disclosure of specified documents or materials. Sanctions will be imposed in the event of non-compliance. Sanctions can include rejection or exclusion of exhibits and witnesses and perhaps may include award of attorney’s fees and costs to the opposing party, or perhaps dismissal of your court case or judgment in favor of the opposition.

Document management is an issue in litigation - it is important that a client cooperate with the attorney and provide requested items.

When cases become more complex, when documents become voluminous or when dissemination to multiple persons is required, disclosure in electronic format is an effective case management tool.

ATTORNEY DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT
complex cases * dissemination to multiple persons * voluminous disclosures

1. Counsel uses a trial data client file index web page to make documents available to clients, investigators, expert witnesses, transcriptionist or other agents counsel may hire.

2. Counsel uses a separate trial disclosure web page to make discovery available to opposing counsel or opposing parties. Typically this will be less information than available to client and attorney agents based upon attorney-client privilege doctrine and attorney work product doctrine.

3. Each trial page is unindexed by search engines and thus location is unknown. When appropriate, documents are encrypted requiring a password to open file. Site location and password are provided to entitled persons via email or hard copy U.S. Mail.

4. This form of disclosure circumvents military, government or corporate prohibition against receipt of encrypted documents and also works well where client's email account has limited storage. A client or other person who may not have an internet email account can access through the internet at the public library or an internet cafe, and clients or persons unfamiliar with the web can ask a librarian to print documents. Universal access.

5. Although efficient, this form of case management and disclosure requires materials to be converted to electronic format.

6. This form of case management also results in internet hosting expense. Current billable rate at attorney's site host is $1 per mb data per month. For cases involving uploading of smaller data files, this cost is absorbed by counsel. Where larger data files are uploaded, this cost is billed to the client. Client billing is based upon the mb size of client's data folders.

7. Finally, this form of case management also results in expenditure of time prepare and upload the client case file index page and trial disclosure page and also to upload documents or material data. Due to organizational and dissemination advantage, attorney typically does not bill time invested to upload client pages or data.

COPY SHOP COSTS

As of March, 2009 FedEx Kinko's Office Print Center at Briargate in Colorado Springs reported fees of $1 per page to scan and $60 per hour to remove staples, convert odd size documents to form which could be scanned, etc. CD creation or other expense may apply. The store declined to sort disorganized material, but agreed to review for feasibility and fee quote on an ad hoc basis. It is not uncommon for counsel to receive a ream (500 pages) or more of supporting material from client or opposing counsel. This serves as an example of potential significant cost, however counsel has no intent to keep current on this page the FedEx pricing structure.

In addition to copy shop costs, time expended procuring copies or electronic files from a copy shop will be billed at standard legal secretarial rates.

COUNSEL IN-HOUSE SCANNING AND COSTS

        Attorney anticipates scanning documents into electronic format as incidental to representation. However, when documents received by counsel become voluminous, or particularly when produced in a format other than requested below and scanner automatic sheet feed is impeded, scanning becomes burdensome. Attorney simply does not have time to play with document conversion where staples, paper clips, documents with background or color, wrinkled or damaged pages and odd or varying sized pages increase scanning time. In the event of voluminous documents or scanner automatic sheet feed impediment, without further notice counsel will simply take the entire document package to FedEx Kinko's Office Print Center or other copy shop for reduction of documents to .pdf format. In addition to copy shop costs, standard legal secretarial time would be billed against the client's trust deposit.

        If accomplished by scanner automatic sheet feed, attorney can reduce documents to electronic format with reasonable time investment. If nominal, no billing is entered for scanning. For larger files up to about 250 pages, scanning is billed at standard legal secretarial rates, regardless of flat fee or hourly fee structure, however attorney does not impose a per scan charge. Conversion can be accomplished at a cost significantly below copy shop expense and perhaps no cost billed to client for smaller files. Scanning jobs exceeding 250 pages may likely be referred to a copy shop and billed as a cost. This applies to document packages received from the opposing party or opposing counsel as well as document packages received from the client.

        Consider this notice given. Acceptable document format and criteria for automatic copy shop referral. A client can avoid significant expense with a little organizational effort and planning. If the client fails to do so, counsel will retain a copy shop to reduce the client's papers to usable electronic format.

ORGANIZATION OF CLIENT DOCUMENTS
PROVIDED TO ATTORNEY
please read carefully - this could cause case rejection

1. Please sort all documents by category and date
e.g. sort each monthly statement by bank and sort by account, most recent on top

2. Please group documents by type - e.g. by bank if multiple accounts, by credit card debt or investment

3. Please refer to format below to avoid document damage or other impediment to scanner automatic sheet feed

4. It is not economically justifiable for an attorney to spend time organizing client documents. Document organization is not included in a flat fee quote. At the attorney standard hourly fee rate, expense may easily exceed trust deposit. If a client fails to adequately organize provided documents or materials, attorney will return the data package for client organization or perhaps discontinue representation.

5. When voluminous, organization of documents is a very important part of litigation and can become burdensome to counsel such that representation to the particular client or multiple clients may be impaired. If overwhelming to a client, attorney requests that the client seek assistance from relatives, friends or a professional copy shop prior to production to counsel. Attorney is unwilling to negotiate document organization. If this is not acceptable to a prospective client, attorney requests that you seek other counsel. I simply have neither the time nor inclination to process grocery bags of disorganized documents. "Been there, done that, have the t-shirt, won't re-visit."

FORMAT OF CLIENT DOCUMENTS
PROVIDED TO ATTORNEY
please read carefully - this could have a significant financial impact on costs in your case

Photographs

1. Photo victim or opposing party. Please provide a photographic image of the alleged victim, spouse, opposing birth parent or debtor. This may be a hard copy photograph, or computer image such as .jpg or .gif. Digital image preferred - can be sent via email, otherwise original photo requested - not photocopy - will be scanned and returned. This will aid process servers or private investigators retained by attorney.

2. Photo self. If you physically drop by for an appointment, attorney will request opportunity to take a digital photo for his file. If not, please submit a physical photo or digital image. Digital image preferred - can be sent via email, otherwise original photo requested - not photocopy - will be scanned and returned. This helps attorney to personalize your case, particularly if you call a few years later regarding representation on an unrelated matter.

3. Photo other. If any object, scene or location is relevant to your case, please submit photographs or digital images or advise attorney he needs to procure. Attorney and investigators each have digital cameras available.

Audio or video files

1. Digital files. Digital files may be submitted by thumb drive, CD or email.

2. Analog files. Attorney will retain a third party source to convert analog audio or video files to digital format for disclosure.

Documents - digital format - preferable

1. Digital files. Documents may be submitted via thumb drive, CD or email.
2. Note: Although .jpg works well for photographs, .jpg images of documents produce very poor print quality. Please use this format only as a last resort, and be aware it may be necessary to produce original hard copy documents for attorney to scan. Please do not email more than 5 pages of .jpg images. Attorney will attempt to accommodate client document email transmission, but time constrictions place limits. .pdf and .tif digital files typically produce quality images.

Documents - hard copy format - acceptable

Attorney is most willing to do reasonable scanning.

1. Documents may be submitted via US Mail, FedEx, hand delivery or drop slot

2. Documents must be single side copies - no double sided copies - no bent, wrinkled, torn or damaged pages

3. Documents must be 8.5" x 11"

4. Documents must be legible

5. Light yellow post-it notes as organizational tools are acceptable; do not use dark post-it notes as they will scan to blackened images

unless required as an exhibit, attorney will shred hard copy documents upon scanning
please keep originals in your possession and provide legible, undamaged, single-sided, unstapled copies to counsel

NOTICE

Document packages received in the following condition will be taken to a copy shop for scanning to .pdf file by the commercial provider

1. Voluminous document package - 250 page or more
2. No irregular sized or odd sized documents - documents which are not 8.5" x 11"
3. No legal sized pages 8.5" x 14"
          If necessary, please reduce to 8.5" x 11" prior to production to attorney. Any copy shop can reduce or increase document size.
4.   No multiple sized pages or different sized pages
5.   No documents which are bent, wrinkled, torn or damaged and will not sheet feed through the scanner as a result
6.   No documents which have color or shaded area which requires re-setting black & white scanning to color or grayscale
7.   No staples - no exceptions
8.   No paper clips
9.   No tabbed pages
10. No highlighted pages
11. No post-it notes which are darkly colored - blackened scans result absent re-setting scanner density

Documents received which impede scanner automatic sheet feed will be submitted to a copy shop for reduction to .pdf

Examples of impediment to scanner automatic sheet feed

Staples take time to remove and frequently damage the paper such that it is rejected by a scanner automatic sheet feeder. Formerly stapled papers stick together and are frequently rejected by a sheet feeder. Paper clipped documents may become wrinkled as a result of the clip and be rejected by the scanner automatic sheet feeder. Odd sized pages may require flatbed scanning, thus significantly increasing scan time. Documents with color or grayscale background or which are highlighted frequently produce blackened scans and must be scanned as color images, thus increasing image storage size and significantly increasing scanning time to re-set scanner settings. Combination regular sized pages and legal sized pages require stopping of the sheet feed, re-setting scanner settings and starting again until the next size page is encountered.

By avoidance of the above, attorney can effectively represent a client and reduce litigation expense. Notice: If a document package contains any of the above, the entire package will be taken to a copy shop for scanning - not just non-conforming pages.

Attorney time is better spent preparing your case than document conversion or copying. Counsel is an attorney and will let a professional copy shop handle the big jobs or difficult scanning. WARNING copy shop reproduction or scanning can be expensive - particularly when the client document package is large.

        Disclosure is offered to opposing counsel or opposing parties at no cost through the client's trial data disclosure web page. Documents or image files may be viewed on the web page, printed or saved to a user's computer. Audio files or video images may be viewed on the web page or saved to a user's computer. Documents may be emailed to the client, or the trial data site may may be utilized to avoid large email attachments or ISP encoded document rejection.
        Disclosure to the opposing party or counsel may be in electronic format via CD mailed through the US Postal Service.
        Standard in-house copy costs and actual postage or shipment apply if hard copy is requested, with advance deposit required.