Choosing software
Criminal defense software: where discovery review fits
Case management tracks the matter. File storage holds the evidence. Discovery review helps your team work through it.
On this page
Criminal defense software can serve several different jobs. Case management organizes the matter; file storage organizes the files; discovery review helps a team examine what those files contain. Start with the job that is slowing your firm down before comparing features.
Three jobs to separate
| Job | What it organizes | What to test |
|---|---|---|
| Managing the matter | Contacts, calendars, tasks, communications, and billing. | Does it fit the administrative work your team does every day? |
| Holding the evidence | Folder structure, access controls, and new file versions. | Can your team find material and see when a version changes? |
| Reviewing discovery | Information inside documents and recordings. | Can a finding be checked against a specific source, with the limits of the review visible? |
Use a small, representative evaluation
Prepare a synthetic or otherwise authorized sample with a few document types and a short recording. Include a detail that appears in two places, an apparent inconsistency, and a file with a known limitation. Write down what your team expects to find before running the sample.
Then ask a lawyer or staff member who did not prepare the sample to use the results. Can they find the cited page? Can they distinguish a quotation from a summary? Can they tell which files were skipped or only partly processed? This is more informative than evaluating the fluency of a long generated narrative.
Questions to ask during a demo
- Does the tool support the actual mix of PDFs, scans, photos, audio, and video your firm receives?
- How does it identify unreadable material or incomplete analysis?
- Can a reviewer get from a finding to the source without hunting through a folder?
- What happens to previous results when a file changes?
- Who can see a case, and who can change that access?
- What does the firm pay for, and when is that price shown?
Keep a short evaluation record with observed results. A feature listed on a website is a starting point for a question, not evidence that it handled your sample correctly. Avoid using confidential case material in a trial until the responsible person has reviewed the service’s terms and data handling.
Evaluate the handoff between people
Discovery review rarely ends with the first reader. Test whether another team member can understand a finding, open its source, and see what remains unresolved. Agree on how the firm will distinguish AI suggestions from attorney-verified work.
The same principle applies when discovery arrives in batches. A useful process preserves the earlier review while making new material and affected findings clear. Our discovery review checklist provides a starting structure.
DiscoRev’s role
DiscoRev focuses on discovery review for criminal-defense firms. It reads connected Box files and helps reviewers examine case information, evidence, support, and gaps. It is not presented as a replacement for a firm’s calendar, billing, or practice-management system. Florida firms can apply for the beta; accepted firms receive $100 in processing credit.
The printable checklistFive review steps on one page. No email required.OpenCommon questions
What is the difference between case management and discovery review software?
Case management organizes the matter: contacts, calendars, tasks, communications, and billing. Discovery review software helps a team examine what documents and recordings contain and connect findings to specific sources.
How should a criminal-defense firm test discovery review software?
Use a small synthetic or otherwise authorized sample with a detail that appears in two places, an apparent inconsistency, and a file with a known limitation. Write down the expected results, then have someone who did not prepare the sample check the output.