The Electronic Discovery Reference Model (EDRM) is a widely adopted framework that outlines the stages of the e-discovery process, from initial information governance through final presentation at trial. It provides a common vocabulary and workflow structure for legal teams managing electronic evidence.
What is the EDRM?
The Electronic Discovery Reference Model was first published in 2005 by the EDRM organization (edrm.net) as a conceptual diagram that maps the e-discovery lifecycle into discrete stages. Since its introduction, the EDRM has become the de facto industry standard for discussing e-discovery workflows. Practitioners, courts, vendors, and corporate legal departments all use EDRM vocabulary to describe their processes and stay aligned across teams.
While the EDRM is not codified in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, courts and practitioners routinely reference its stages when discussing discovery obligations, proportionality, and best practices. The Sedona Conference principles align closely with the EDRM framework, and many judicial opinions cite EDRM stages when evaluating the reasonableness of a party's discovery efforts.
The model is intentionally flexible. Not every matter requires every stage, and the stages don't always proceed in strict linear order. In practice, legal teams often work across multiple stages at once, returning to earlier steps as new information emerges or the matter's scope changes.
"The EDRM diagram represents a conceptual view of the e-discovery process, not a literal, linear, or exhaustive one. It provides a common framework for the discussion of issues and activities that may arise in e-discovery."-- EDRM (edrm.net), the originating organization of the Electronic Discovery Reference Model
The nine stages of the EDRM
- Information Governance - Policies and practices for managing ESI across the organization before any legal matter arises.
- Identification - Locating relevant ESI sources and custodians once a legal matter is anticipated or initiated.
- Preservation - Placing legal holds to protect relevant data from alteration or destruction.
- Collection - Gathering ESI from identified sources in a defensible manner that maintains data integrity.
- Processing - Reducing the volume of collected ESI through deduplication, filtering, and extraction of text and metadata.
- Review - Evaluating documents for relevance, privilege, and confidentiality through manual or technology-assisted methods.
- Analysis - Identifying patterns, key documents, and case themes within the reviewed document population.
- Production - Delivering documents to requesting parties in agreed formats, with Bates numbers and redactions applied.
- Presentation - Displaying evidence at depositions, hearings, and trial in a clear and effective manner.
The EDRM in Hintyr
Hintyr covers the Processing, Review, Analysis, and Production stages of the EDRM. When you upload files, Hintyr processes them to extract text, metadata, and embedded content, reducing volume and making documents searchable.
For Review and Analysis, the document browser and AI agent let you evaluate documents for relevance, identify key themes, and apply tags to classify your findings. The redaction tools protect sensitive content, and Bates numbering assigns unique identifiers for precise reference.
For Production, Hintyr's production tools let you export documents with Bates stamps and redactions in formats that meet opposing counsel's requirements. Together, these features span the core stages where legal teams spend the majority of their time and budget.
Frequently asked questions
Is the EDRM a legal requirement?
Do all cases require every EDRM stage?
Which EDRM stages does Hintyr cover?
Where does TAR fit in the EDRM?
Related terms
- ESI (Electronically Stored Information)
- Processing
- Document Production
- Legal Hold
- Custodian
- Review Platform