Learning to Speak EDRM

12
Jun
2012

Ada Spahija

Featuring experts George Socha and Tom Gelbmann

When I asked George Socha and Tom Gelbmann about how EDRM has changed the industry, it became clear to me that EDRM more than demystified eDiscovery - it defined eDiscovery and finally opened a line of communication between vendors and consumers that had never really been established before.  At various legal technology conferences people were talking to vendors to place where their products and services fit into the model.  Dispelling any confusion about eDiscovery was the primary goal of EDRM, and it seems to have gone above and beyond that.

Beyond the model itself is a whole organization that works on various important projects that further define eDiscovery and answer important questions.  Currently there are 9 EDRM projects going on (see http://www.edrm.net/projects for a list), all of which have been chosen by participants.  Since the inception of EDRM in 2005 over 230 organizations involved and more than 1,000 individuals have participated.  Projects are identified based on participant input and then endorsed by the rest of the organizational body during one of two annual meetings that take place in the spring and fall.

Some of the most recognized projects that have been initiated by EDRM include: The Information Governance Reference Model (http://www.edrm.net/projects/igrm), and the Search Project (http://www.edrm.net/projects/search).  The Information Governance Reference Model (IGRM) was designed to be an effective framework that helps organizations develop and implement actionable information governance programs.  The Search project helps provide a framework for defining and managing various aspects of Search as applied to eDiscovery workflow.

Socha and Gelbmann say that getting involved in EDRM is easy, especially with the three levels of participation they offer. The levels include: Organization, Individual and Student.  By getting involved, you can directly influence the EDRM discussion by offering insights or helping, in some capacity, to improve the eDiscovery processes as well as the entire legal industry.

The easiest way to get involved is by going to http://www.edrm.net/joining-edrm/join, choosing your level of participation and getting started! Whether you choose to participate or not, taking the time to understand EDRM, what it does, what questions it answers, and the guidelines and standards it sets, will get you on the track to speaking the EDRM language and more thoroughly understanding eDiscovery!