Advanced Discovery Techniques

It is not uncommon for cases to yield large amounts of electronic data and paper documents, both of which need to be reviewed and prepared for production.  Learn how to make informed decisions about the best practices for your cases, for your clients, and for your firm, when it comes to document management and review.  There are numerous programs on the market today, each with pros and cons.  During this session you will learn what those pros and cons are, as well as how to overcome other electronic discovery hurdles.

Rhonda Reid joined Encore in June of 2008. Rhonda comes to Encore with over 20 years of industry experience, including 18 years at the law firm of Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory & Natsis LLP. Her responsibilities at Allen Matkins included consulting with the Litigation Department and their clients regarding cost effective approaches to discovery review and processing. While at Allen Matkins, Rhonda was responsible for coordinating and directing the production of complex large-scale litigation projects, as well as supervision of document scanning and coding projects. Rhonda brings to Encore her extensive knowledge of the processes which firms implement in their day-today discovery procedures as well as her experience in setting up and supporting technological requirements for off-site trials. Additionally, Rhonda has trial consulting expertise, having participated in numerous trials where she worked closely with attorneys from jury selection to trial presentation, as well as interviewing jurors post-verdict.

Rhonda has litigation experience in California, as well as other jurisdictions including Washington, Colorado, Hawaii and Guam, to name a few. Her work has focused on general and business litigation, complex construction cases, contract disputes, bankruptcy and creditors' rights matters, receiverships and real estate related disputes.

Rhonda has extensive experience with trial-related software for the organization, retrieval and display of information, documents, testimony and other evidence, including the use of state-of-the-art litigation support systems and software for multimedia storage and presentation of information during trial. She is very knowledgeable about and works well with attorneys and clients to develop case management strategies.

Rhonda is particularly proficient at organizing and managing complex litigation support facilities or "war rooms" in connection with lengthy or off-site trials. She has helped design and oversee construction and operation of trial support facilities, including a massive war-room and court-room complex and the related technological equipment in connection with a complex trial that involved over seven months of testimony, motions and argument overseas, and of another war-room and related facilities for a trial in the California Central Valley. She is also qualified to simultaneously operate several different computer and non-computer systems in preparation for or during trial.

Rhonda received her paralegal certificate from California State University Los Angeles as a Litigation Specialist in 1992. She is a member of the Association of Business Trial Lawyers, the National Association of Legal Assistants, and of the Los Angeles Paralegal Association where she served three straight terms as its President. She recently served three terms as an Advisor on the Executive Committee for the Litigation Section of the State Bar of California. Rhonda was the recipient of the 1999 California Five Star Paralegal of the Year award, was awarded the 2003 Affiliated Associations Outstanding Contribution Award from the National Association of Legal Assistants, was the 2003 Volunteer of the Year for Public Counsel, was awarded the 2005 Lifetime Achievement Award by the Los Angeles Paralegal Association, and was awarded the 2006 Adoption Advocate of the Year by Public Counsel.

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