A well-structured privilege review workflow is essential for litigation teams that need to move quickly without compromising accuracy or defensibility. As data volumes continue to grow across investigations and disputes, legal teams face the challenge of reviewing large, complex sets of documents while protecting attorney-client communications and attorney work-product. A strong workflow provides the foundation for consistent decisions, reduced rework, and a defensible process that can withstand judicial or regulatory scrutiny.
Privilege review is not only about identifying protected material. It is also about applying a clear, repeatable framework that supports timely production and minimizes risk. With the right approach, legal teams can accelerate their review timelines while ensuring their decisions remain consistent and well-documented.
1. Establish Clear Definitions and Decision Criteria
A privilege review workflow starts with clear guidance. Legal teams must build a shared understanding of what qualifies as attorney-client communication, what constitutes attorney work-product, and how these categories apply to the matter at hand. This includes defining what is considered privileged, what may be conditionally privileged, and what should be escalated for senior attorney review.
Effective workflows include concise reference guides, example documents, and specific indicators for identifying privilege. These materials help reviewers navigate complex or ambiguous content with greater confidence. The American Bar Association offers helpful foundational guidance on privilege principles, which can support the development of internal standards.
2. Build a Structured Review Process
Once definitions are in place, teams can design a structured review process that creates predictability and reduces errors. This often includes:
- Tiered review levels that route sensitive or uncertain material to experienced attorneys.
- Coding templates that require reviewers to classify each document using predefined privilege categories.
- Consistent tagging for individuals, domains, and communication patterns associated with counsel.
- Protocols for family-based review to prevent inconsistent treatment of related documents.
A strong workflow helps reviewers act quickly without sacrificing accuracy. By standardizing the steps, teams reduce the likelihood of conflicting privilege calls and the need for large-scale corrections late in the process.
3. Leverage Quality Control Throughout the Review
Quality control should be embedded at multiple stages of the privilege review workflow. Regular sampling of completed work helps identify trends, training needs, or inconsistencies that require correction. Quality checks may include:
- Reviewing a percentage of documents coded as privileged or non-privileged.
- Validating decisions involving borderline or sensitive material.
- Checking for consistency across reviewers and shifts.
- Ensuring privilege tagging aligns with established definitions and case strategy.
Ongoing QC prevents small deviations from escalating into larger issues and helps maintain defensibility if privilege decisions are later challenged.
4. Use Technology Thoughtfully, with Human Oversight
Technology can support efficiency, particularly in identifying communication patterns, clustering similar content, and flagging potential privilege indicators. However, human oversight remains imperative. Technology-assisted review can help prioritize documents, but final privilege determinations should be handled by trained reviewers who understand the legal nuances involved and can apply their legal judgment.
Combining technology with a structured privilege review workflow allows teams to accelerate early review stages while still maintaining the accuracy and judgment required for privilege calls.
5. Maintain Strong Documentation and Audit Trails
Every privilege review workflow should include clear documentation of decisions, protocols, issue notes, and changes over time. This recordkeeping supports defensibility in the event of disputes and ensures that privilege decisions can be explained and substantiated. Audit trails also help with training, refinement, and continuous improvement.
Maintaining High Standards in Your Privilege Review Workflow
A strong privilege review workflow balances speed with accuracy by combining clear definitions, structured processes, consistent quality control, and thoughtful use of technology. With the right framework in place, legal teams can move through large datasets efficiently while safeguarding privileged information and maintaining defensible standards.
Contact Baer Reed to learn how our legal support services help implement consistent, defensible privilege review workflows.
Mr. Reyes graduated with honors from the Ateneo de Manila University, where he received the Procter and Gamble Student Excellence Award. He obtained his Juris Doctor degree from the Ateneo de Manila School of Law. During law school, Mr. Reyes was part of the Philippine delegation to the Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot held in Vienna, Austria. He was also a member of the Ateneo Society of International Law and the St. Thomas More Debate Society. He completed his internship at the Public Attorney’s Office. He wrote a thesis entitled: “To Kill A White Elephant: An Analysis of the Fiduciary Exception to the Corporate Attorney-Client Privilege”. Mr. Reyes is admitted to practice law in the Philippines and the State of New York.
Matthew Hersh earned a B.A. in Political Science from Columbia University in 1990 and graduated cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center in 1999. He also holds a master’s degree in international relations from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service.
Cap. Avi Levak (Res. IDF) graduated from from Israel’s prestigious Ben-Gurion University of the Negev with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Mathematics. He is also a Leadership and Communication coach trained in TuT coaching by Alon gal in Israel. Avi specializes in high-level, in-depth analysis of business and client needs, within systems and software strategy and architecture.
Ms. Lardizabal-Manzano is a graduate of San Sebastian College-Recoletos, where she earned her B.A. in Political Science. In 2003, she received her law degree from Lyceum of the Philippines and was admitted to practice law in 2004.
Mr. De Guzman graduated from San Beda College with a degree of Bachelor of Arts Major in Economics and received his law degree from San Beda College of Law. He is multilingual and is fluent in three languages: Chinese, Filipino, and English. He was admitted to the Philippine Bar in 2003.
Ms. Aquino-Batallones obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Development Studies (with Minors in Global Politics and Hispanic Studies) from the Ateneo de Manila University. In 2011, she received her Juris Doctor degree from Ateneo de Manila University School of Law. During law school, she interned at Romulo Mabanta Buenaventura Sayoc & de los Angeles then became an intern of Ateneo Legal Services Center’s Clinical Legal Education Program.
Ms. Cruz-Anonuevo graduated cum laude and top nine in her batch from Miriam College with a degree of Bachelor of Arts in InternationalStudies. She obtained her Juris Doctor degree from Ateneo de Manila University School of Law in Rockwell. During law school, she interned in Rivera, Santos, Maranan & Associates. She was also part of Ateneo’s Labor Law Bar Operations. She wrote her thesis on, “Stealing Privacy: Limitations on Media’s Photographic Invasion.,” Ms. Cruz-Anonuevo is admitted to practice law in the Philippines.
Ms. Tyler graduated cum laude from Georgetown University and received her law degree, cum laude, from Georgetown University Law Center. During law school, she interned at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. She also worked on The Tax Lawyer journal and was a member of the award-winning Barristers’ Council Mock Trial Team. Ms. Tyler is admitted to practice law in the State of California and the District of Columbia.