Electronic discovery systems and workflow management method

On a computing device, a method for collecting electronic discovery data from custodians, comprising:

• maintaining a custodian directory comprising a plurality of custodian profiles, each custodian profile associated with a custodian and comprising information relating to a storage location in a computing network associated with the custodian as well as a status identifier as to whether the custodian has a non-published status;
• receiving an electronic discovery request that identifies a first custodian;
• in response to receiving the electronic discovery request, accessing a custodian profile associated with the first custodian to determine a storage location associated with the first custodian;
• automatically collecting data stored at the storage location;
• storing the collected data on a storage device;
• and
• tracking the collected data without notifying the first custodian of the tracking if the custodian profile associated with the first custodian includes a non-publication parameter.

A system for facilitating an electronic discovery workflow, comprising:

• memory;
• and
• at least one processor in communication with the memory, the memory comprising instructions executable by the at least one processor to:
• maintain a custodian directory comprising a plurality of custodian profiles, each custodian profile associated with a custodian and comprising information relating to a data source in a computing network associated with the custodian as well as a status identifier identifying whether the custodian has a non-published status;
• send an electronic discovery request to an e-discovery coordinator, the electronic discovery request received from a legal/compliance team member and identifying a first custodian;
• assign the electronic discovery request to a collection coordinator based on input received from the e-discovery coordinator;
• assign a collection project to one or more collection/preservation teams based on input received from the collection coordinator to thereby satisfy the electronic discovery request;
• access a custodian profile in the custodian directory associated with the first custodian to determine a data source associated with the first custodian;
• collect data stored in the data source associated with the first custodian;
• send the collected data associated with the first custodian to the collection coordinator;
• and
• track the collected data without notifying the first custodian of the tracking if the custodian profile associated with the first custodian includes a non-publication parameter.