Winning strategies for construction litigation from discovery to decision

Why is ediscovery different in construction litigation?

According to the 2023 Arcadis Report, the average North American construction dispute now costs $42.8 million — a 42% increase from the previous year. Construction cases generate some of the most complex electronic evidence in litigation: CAD files, BIM models, mobile photos from every person on site, project management databases, and proprietary scheduling software most legal teams have never encountered. The attorneys who manage this data well, from day one through trial, are the ones who win.

In this free guide, our legal technology experts share practical insights on how to take control of your construction cases, streamline discovery, and present your story with confidence in court.

What are the biggest data challenges in construction ediscovery?

Three challenges come up in nearly every construction matter: volume (data sets are often measured in terabytes, not gigabytes, which makes strategic filtering essential rather than optional), mobile device evidence (photos and videos from every person on site, often requiring forensic collection to preserve GPS metadata proving when and where they were taken), and specialized software (programs like Primavera and Buildertrend hold critical scheduling and project data but don't work in standard review platforms, forcing an early decision between native software access and targeted PDF exports).

What you'll learn in this guide:

• How early case assessment helps you maximize insurance coverage, clarify damages, and support earlier settlement — not just organize documents
• How to manage massive, multi-format data sets without drowning your review team
• How to negotiate an ESI protocol that accounts for construction's mobile evidence and specialized file formats
• How to build a document review workflow — coding strategy, privilege protection, and reviewer assignments — for multi-party disputes
• How to present complex technical evidence, like BIM models and scheduling software, to judges and juries seeing it for the first time

Bonus: What is a trial technician (hotseater), and why does construction litigation need one?

A trial technician, or hotseater, runs the technology during a hearing or trial — pulling up exhibits, switching between native software and static demonstratives, and keeping pace with cross-examination. Construction cases need someone who understands both courtroom dynamics and the technical evidence itself, since demonstrating a BIM model or a project schedule in its original software often carries more weight than a static slide.

This eGuide is your playbook for turning complex construction disputes into winning cases.

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