Lesson 17 Paralegal

Adverse inference instruction

An instruction telling a jury to assume missing evidence would have been unfavorable to a party

Affidavit

A written, sworn statement of facts confirmed by oath or affirmation

Authentication

The process of proving evidence is genuine and what it claims to be

Blockchain

A decentralized digital ledger system where data entries are permanent and resistant to tampering

Chain of custody

Documentation showing who handled evidence and when, to prove it was preserved properly

Cloud computing

Storing and accessing data on remote servers over the internet

Custodian of records

The person responsible for maintaining and safeguarding official or business records

Data Breach

Unauthorized access to, exposure of, or theft of confidential digital information

Deposition

Out of court sworn testimony of a witness recorded for later use in litigation

Discovery

The pretrial process wherein parties exchange evidence and information

E-discovery

Electronic discovery, identifying, collecting and producing electronically stored information

Electronically stored information (ESI)

Digital data used as evidence, including but not limited to emails; texts, files, and databases

Encryption

A security method that scrambles data so that it is only readable with a decryption key

Forensic imaging

Creating an exact, bit-by-bit copy of a digital device for investigation

Hash value

A unique digital fingerprint used to verify a file’s integrity and authenticity

Hearsay

An out-of-court statement offered to prove the truth of what it asserts

Impeachment

Challenging the credibility or reliability of evidence or a witness

Initial disclosure

Rule-based requirement to share certain information with the opposing party early in discovery

Jurisdiction

A court’s authority to hear a case and make binding decisions

Litigation hold

An instruction to preserve all evidence relevant to anticipated or ongoing litigation

Metadata

Hidden data describing a file’s creation, modifications or transmission details

Native format

The original file format of digital evidence, preserving metadata and functionality

Predictive coding

AI technology that reviews a sample of documents to classify large datasets

Privilege

Legal protection keeping private confidential communications between lawyer and client

Proportionality

The balance in discovery between the importance of information against the burden or cost of producing it

Rule 26 (FRCP)

Requires disclosure of relevant evidence, including ESI, early in litigation

Rule 34 (FRCP)

Allows parties to request documents and ESI in discovery in native format

Rule 37 (FRCP)

Provides sanctions for spoliation or failure to comply with discovery obligations

Self-authentication

When evidence proves itself genuine without additional witness testimony or proof

Spoliation

Destruction of, alteration or, or failure to preserve relevant evidence for litigation

Subpoena

A legal order requiring someone to provide documents or appear to testify

Technology-assisted review (TAR)

AI-assisted review of electronic documents to speed up discovery and reduce costs

Warrant

In the context of the Fourth Amendment, a court order authorizing a search or seizure of evidence