Legal teams aren’t just fighting courtroom battles anymore; they’re fighting data overload. Every litigation, investigation, or compliance matter now involves massive volumes of digital evidence, tighter deadlines, and ever-changing data formats. And if you’re leading legal ops, supporting litigation, or managing review workflows, you’ve likely felt the pressure. The good news? The biggest challenges in eDiscovery are solvable if you know where the real friction lies.
Let’s walk through the top eDiscovery headaches, what’s causing them, and smart ways legal teams can tackle them.
Top Challenges in eDiscovery
1. Information Overload Is Real
Most legal teams aren’t just reviewing emails anymore. They’re dealing with documents, text messages, chat logs, cloud files, and more. The volume is massive, and growing every year.
💡 What to do: Adopt smart data culling and filtering practices early in the process. Use analytics tools to identify what’s relevant fast. Build early case assessment (ECA) into your standard workflow so you’re not reviewing 10x more data than necessary.
2. Deadlines Are Getting Brutal
With courts expecting fast turnarounds and regulators demanding quick production, legal teams have less time to get things right.
💡 What to do: Build a flexible, always-on response team, whether in-house or outsource eDiscovery services that can scale with tight timelines. Use tools with built-in automation to speed up document classification and privilege review. Predefine playbooks to avoid last-minute decision-making.
3. Data Formats Keep Changing
It’s not just Word docs and PDFs. Now it’s messages, video transcripts, social media comments, and even emojis. That’s a huge shift from traditional review formats.
💡 What to do: Invest in tools and processes that handle structured and unstructured data alike. Make sure your workflows can collect, process, and render modern file types without breaking. Test this during low-stress times, not mid-case.
Also read: E-discovery Solutions- Common Mistake To Avoid!
4. Cross-Border Data Gets Complicated
Dealing with cases that cross into the EU, UK, or APAC? Data privacy regulations like GDPR, HIPAA, and CCPA make things messy, fast.
💡 What to do: Establish privacy-first review protocols. Localize data processing when possible, and use role-based access controls. Map out your data transfer procedures clearly so legal teams don’t scramble to comply under pressure.
5. Quality Control Is Slipping
Rushed reviews, overworked teams, and unclear tagging rules are a recipe for disaster. One mistake—like producing a privileged doc, can cost big.
💡 What to do: Implement layered QC checks. Use review guidelines that are clear and updated regularly. Have one team handle first-level review and another handle privilege review. Build in pauses for quality assurance before production.
6. Your Tools Don’t Talk to Each Other
Having great tools is one thing. Getting them to work together is another. Disconnected software can slow down even the most skilled legal team.
💡 What to do: Choose platforms that integrate well. Avoid point solutions that can’t share data. Where gaps exist, assign a tech liaison (even part-time) to keep things moving and avoid costly workflow clashes.
7. You Can’t Hire Fast Enough
Finding skilled eDiscovery professionals is tough. Keeping them during slow periods is even tougher.
💡 What to do: Build a hybrid team. Keep a lean core in-house, but have vetted external partners on standby who can jump in when things spike. Cross-train your team so reviewers can flex across projects. Treat external reviewers as part of your extended legal ops.
8. Budgets Are Getting Tighter
eDiscovery isn’t cheap—and budget surprises aren’t welcome at the C-suite level. Overruns usually come from scope creep, unexpected custodians, or reactive planning.
💡 What to do: Set fixed-fee models where possible. Run estimates during custodian interviews. Be proactive, don’t wait until discovery hits to plan your resource and spending strategy. Also, revisit matters post-close to evaluate where costs ballooned.
Final Thoughts
The top challenges in eDiscovery today aren’t just about data; they’re about strategy. Legal leaders at top firms and in-house departments across the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Australia are rethinking how they approach discovery, from how they budget to who they partner with to what tech stack actually delivers ROI.
If you’re working with an LPO partner like Aeren LPO, the goal isn’t just cheaper document review; it’s smarter workflows, proactive insights, and expert-backed scalability.
Want to Tackle These Challenges with Confidence?
Aeren LPO delivers expert eDiscovery services that are scalable, defensible, and cost-effective. From data mapping to managed document review, we bring the right mix of human expertise and tech automation to help you stay ahead of these evolving challenges.