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Executing Successful Data Migrations in eDiscovery

Jan 15, 2025

Organizations conduct data migrations between systems for many reasons: to maintain integrity, ensure accessibility, comply with eDiscovery requirements, and more. Centralizing data in one secure system improves security, streamlines processes, reduces risk, and enables effective data management. It also allows organizations to realize the full potential of the newest eDiscovery technology.

However, eDiscovery data migrations are almost never straightforward. Those struggling to adopt new systems often face many challenges: access issues, tight timelines, and unforeseen obstacles that threaten to delay projects, thwart deadlines, and result in noncompliance.

What steps or best practices should legal teams consider when migrating vast amounts of data—often containing sensitive information—from one eDiscovery system to another? How can teams balance needs regarding time, cost, and the learning curve associated with adopting a new system?

What Makes eDiscovery Data Migrations Different From Standard Data Migration?

Data migration in eDiscovery differs from standard data migration in several important ways:

  • Purpose: Standard data migration consolidates information in a single system to support new technology or processes. In eDiscovery, migrations aim to ensure regulatory compliance, reduce storage costs, or leverage advanced features.
  • Compliance: In standard data migration, the focus usually is on the integrity of the data in terms of functionality, not legal compliance. In an eDiscovery data migration, teams must maintain the chain of custody and document every step of the migration to maintain the data’s integrity, since changes to metadata, e.g., timestamps, authorship, could compromise its admissibility in court.
  • Privacy: Although privacy is a concern in any data migration, the stakes are higher in eDiscovery, where data migration involves unique requirements related to the handling, organization, and protection of sensitive data. Data migrated for eDiscovery purposes—confidential emails, legal documents, and personal client information—requires careful data handling and strict privacy controls.
  • Searchability: eDiscovery teams often collect unstructured data, index it, and make it searchable to enable easier access and streamline review processes. In a standard migration, searchability often depends on project requirements and may not be as crucial.
  • File formats: In eDiscovery, each file type—PDFs, emails, chat messages, proprietary databases—requires specialized handling to ensure that metadata is not lost, distorted, or altered. Although file compatibility and data structure are central in a standard migration, handling diverse sets of file formats is less common, and preserving metadata may not be as stringent.
  • Errors: Data discrepancies and errors in migration have serious consequences in eDiscovery, making comprehensive auditing and error tracking critical during data migration. While error handling and auditing are also vital in a standard migration, the focus is typically more on continuing operations, not dealing with legal ramifications.

Data migration in eDiscovery requires specialized tools, processes, and expertise to ensure legal compliance, accuracy, and minimal risk for all parties.

Steps Legal Teams Should Take When Migrating Data

  • Develop a comprehensive strategy: Careful planning and customization are vital to ensuring a successful eDiscovery data migration. Key components of the plan should include pinpointing the origin and location of the data, identifying data volume, format, and size, defining the scope of the data to be migrated, determining a system’s capacity to handle the migration process, and allocating a budget that will allow for smooth migration.
  • Form a tech-savvy team: Migrating data is a complex process, making familiarity with database components and structure critical. Technologically competent stakeholders, project managers, consultants, and litigation support personnel who know how to handle various types of data migration can provide vital assistance with the most specialized parts of the migration.
  • Establish clear objectives: Some major objectives of an eDiscovery data migration are to minimize costs and downtime and ensure that the data is accurately and securely transferred to a new system that provides access to the latest eDiscovery technology with advanced features like upgraded search capabilities, superior analytics, and improved data visualization tools.
  • Leverage automation: Automating as much of the data migration process as possible is essential. Automated archiving allows companies to retain and access archived data, avoiding the high cost of maintaining the original infrastructure. From a single, secure, centrally managed repository, multiple types of unstructured information are stored, indexed, preserved, expired, and reviewed for eDiscovery.
  • Consider the cloud: Cloud-based solutions enable organizations to outsource IT support while benefiting from advanced eDiscovery consulting expertise, training, and tailored technology solutions. While transferring significant amounts of data from on-premises servers to the cloud can be a complex venture, specialized providers continually develop cloud-based solutions like RelativityOne to streamline data migration.
  • Encourage communication: Determine how stakeholders will be informed during the process, tailoring communication approaches to various departments and individuals. Meticulously document the entire process to ensure transparency and provide a helpful reference for future migrations.
  • Monitor the process: To help ensure a successful migration, continuously monitor the process to recognize and tackle any issues to keep the migration on track. After the migration is complete, conduct a complete review, analyze the process, and identify areas for improvement.

Issues That Might Occur During the Migration Process

Without a concrete plan, data migrations in eDiscovery can be subject to a host of risks, like:

  • Cost overruns
  • Data loss or corruption
  • Negative impact on eDiscovery workflows
  • Non-compliance with legal or regulatory requirements
  • Security risks
  • User training or adoption issues

Although data migration in eDiscovery can be a complex process, CDS’ Advisory Services can create a nuanced plan to aid clients in accomplishing a timely and cost-effective data transfer.

CDS Advisory Services brings together leading advisors and technical experts to assist clients throughout the discovery process, including with data migration. We offer a diligent, creative, and consultative approach, unique in the industry. With a deep knowledge of discovery processes as well as data management, our eDiscovery consulting connects the legal and the technical worlds.

As a RelativityOne Gold Partner, CDS has helped many clients successfully manage cloud-based eDiscovery in the US and abroad. We leverage proprietary workflows and technology to help clients get the most out of RelativityOne’s powerful, best-in-breed eDiscovery solution. To find out more about how CDS can make your organization’s data migration journey smoother, contact us at  to schedule a consultation today.

About the Author

<a href="https://cdslegal.com/team/richard-das/" target="_blank">Richard Das</a>

Richard Das

In his role as Vice President of Operations, Richard is responsible for supporting day-to-day operations of core services at CDS. He has been the solution architect behind many complex discovery matters including DOJ second requests and international matters during his tenure at the company.