Say the case’s “silver bullet” document is a chat between defendants. Figuring out whether this is a relevant and responsive document requires understanding the abbreviation, the timing of the conversation, the roles of the participants, and perhaps the anxiety conveyed by the emoji. A reviewer in the last days of the review may have developed this context and will recognize the importance, but what if the chat surfaced on day one of the review? It might not have been identified as key … or it might not have been identified as responsive at all.

Should we change the review process to account for this disconnect? This is a conversation that the tech-focused side of the aisle often misses, and an ongoing one. Here are a few of my thoughts on how we can ensure short messages don’t fall through the cracks.