Toeing the line of not over- or under-collecting data during discovery isn’t always easy. Defensibility concerns, monetary incentives and miscommunication, for instance, can often cause clients and their vendors to over-collect during the discovery phase, attorneys noted.

But while common, over collection during e-discovery can lead to lawsuits. On Feb. 4, Miller Bryant attorneys filed Olson v. Consilio and Lathan in Tarrant County, Texas, alleging Consilio and its employee Willie Lathan collected all of their client’s emails from Jan. 1, 2012, to Nov. 5, 2021, without applying agreed-upon search terms, according to a court filing provided by the firm. The plaintiff, Angelyn Olson, was a custodian for an unrelated legal matter Miller & Brown was counsel on.