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Data Collection.
Get this wrong, and the rest of the matter suffers. Data collection is where defensibility starts, and it needs to be done with care.
We work with you, your IT team and any third parties holding relevant material to identify, preserve and collect data in a way that's defensible, proportionate and properly documented. That starts with understanding the matter. Where does the data sit? Who are the custodians? What systems are in play, whether that's Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, mobile devices, archived backups, or chat platforms?
We map this out before anyone touches a hard drive, so collection is targeted rather than indiscriminate. Chain of custody is preserved at every step, with a clear audit trail you can stand behind if challenged. Whether it's a single laptop or a multi-jurisdictional collection involving thousands of custodians, the same rigour applies.
Once collected, data is handed off to processing in a structured, fully auditable form, ready for the next stage of the workflow.
Data Processing.
Collected data is rarely review-ready. Processing is where the noise gets stripped out so your team only sees material that genuinely matters.
We process native files, emails with attachments, mobile data, transcripts, scanned documents and mixed file types using forensically sound industry-standard tooling. De-duplication and de-NISTing are built in, removing system files and repeat content before they reach review. Modern OCR techniques are applied to capture handwriting, annotations and complex tables that older OCR routinely misses, so material with evidential value isn't quietly lost in the pipeline.
Throughout processing, your data is held in a secure, access-controlled environment with full audit logging. Defensible processing protocols are followed, aligned with UK GDPR requirements and the standards expected for sensitive litigation, investigation and regulatory work.
The result is a clean, defensible dataset ready for early case investigation, review or onward production, delivered in hours rather than days.
Document Review.
Document review is where matters are won or lost, and where costs traditionally spiral. Our approach is simple: review smarter, not harder.
We build review workflows around what your matter actually needs. Linear review for smaller, focused datasets. Continuous active learning where volumes justify it. Bespoke tagging structures, review macros and hot-keys so your reviewers spend their time on judgement, not navigation.
Merlin Alchemy supports first-pass, second-level, privilege and quality control reviews from a single interface. Documents move through review stages via an intelligent queuing system rather than rigid batches, which keeps throughput high and reviewers consistently engaged. Real-time dashboards give you visibility into progress, reviewer performance and decisions made, so there are no surprises late in the day.
For larger reviews, we can supplement your team or take the work on entirely, applying the same rigour and the same technology, scaled to fit. Production happens within the same platform: Bates stamping, redactions, privilege logs, native and image productions, load file creation. No exporting between tools, no broken workflows.
Technology Assisted Review / GenAI.
Technology Assisted Review has been part of serious litigation for well over a decade, and it works. What's changed is the introduction of generative AI, which adds a layer of analysis older TAR tools simply could not deliver.
Merlin Alchemy combines both. Continuous active learning prioritises the most likely relevant documents, getting them in front of reviewers first and learning from every coding decision made. Multi-LLM generative analysis goes further, letting your team ask plain-language questions across thousands of documents and receive sourced, cited answers linked directly back to the underlying material.
For larger volumes, ReviewPartner steps in. It's GenAI-powered review applied at scale, capable of working through datasets in days that would otherwise take a traditional review team weeks. The same focus is applied to document one hundred thousand as to document one, with senior-level analytical sophistication baked into every decision. We deploy it where it earns its place, with experienced lawyers retaining oversight on the calls that matter.
That combination means you can interrogate a dataset properly. Find every reference to a specific issue. Build a chronology in minutes. Identify inconsistencies between witness accounts. Surface the documents that change the shape of a case. AI is simply the leverage that lets legal expertise go further.
Early Case Investigation (ECI).
Before you commit to litigation, settle a claim, or pick up the phone to opposing counsel, you need to know what your data actually says. Early case investigation gives you that picture, fast.
Using Merlin Alchemy, we can interrogate large volumes of material with speed and precision. Three search engines run in parallel: Boolean for precise field-level queries, freeform for natural-language searches, and semantic for concept-based discovery. Generative AI then synthesises findings across thousands of documents into clear, cited reports you can put in front of decision-makers. Where the volumes call for it, ReviewPartner can work through the underlying dataset in days rather than weeks, accelerating the path to a clear view of the case.
Did a key custodian discuss the issue in dispute? Do contemporaneous records support the version of events being put forward? Are there documents you'd rather know about now than discover at disclosure? ECI surfaces the answers early, when there's still time to use them strategically.
The aim is straightforward. Better information, earlier in the matter, means better decisions on whether to fight, settle, mediate or walk away. It usually means a meaningfully lower overall spend on the dispute as well.
DSARs (Data Subject Access Requests).
DSARs are deceptively complex. The legal threshold under UK GDPR is well established, but actually responding within the statutory timeframe, across the volume and variety of data most organisations now hold, is a serious operational challenge.
We help organisations respond to DSARs quickly, accurately and proportionately. Data is collected from across your systems, processed and de-duplicated, then run through targeted searches to identify material relating to the data subject. Merlin Alchemy's freeform and semantic search capabilities mean we surface relevant content even where it doesn't contain obvious keywords, picking up the references a basic keyword search would miss. For high-volume DSARs, ReviewPartner can be brought in to work through the dataset at pace, keeping you well inside the statutory window.
Redaction is handled directly within the platform, with privilege, third-party personal data and exempt material flagged and dealt with consistently. Generative AI assists with summarisation and drafting where appropriate, accelerating the response without removing the human review DSAR work demands.
The result is a defensible, well-evidenced response, delivered within the statutory window, that stands up to ICO scrutiny if it's challenged.
I would place ECI just after Data Processing.
Consulting.
eDiscovery should make a matter easier to run, not harder. Done well, it sharpens strategy, contains cost, and keeps the focus on the issues that actually decide the case. Done badly, it does the opposite.
Our consulting work is built around getting it right from day one. We sit alongside in-house teams, law firms and counsel to design and deliver eDiscovery that's defensible, proportionate to the matter, and shaped to the questions you actually need answered. Not a process for its own sake, and not a swarm of reviewers working through documents that should never have made it to review in the first place.
We bring deep practical experience across litigation, arbitration, regulatory investigations and internal enquiries. Whether you need a second pair of eyes on a disclosure strategy, a project managed end-to-end, or someone to step in and quietly fix a matter that's drifted off course, we're built to slot in where we're needed.
Where we add the most value:
- eDiscovery strategy and scoping, including disclosure model selection, custodian and data source mapping, and Disclosure Review Document preparation
- Data collection and preservation, defensibly executed across cloud platforms, mobile devices, archives and third-party systems
- Project management, from initial scoping through to production, with clear reporting and tight cost control
- Technology strategy, including where (and where not) to apply GenAI, TAR and ReviewPartner to keep matters proportionate
- Review design and oversight, building workflows that get the right documents in front of the right people in the right order
- Crisis support, when a matter has gone sideways and needs an experienced hand to bring it back
What we don't do is overcomplicate. We bring the technology, the process and the experience to deliver what your matter actually needs, no more and no less. The right approach, applied properly, is almost always the cheaper one as well.
If you'd like to talk through a specific matter, or just explore how we work, please get in touch.
