Your Data Expert for Class Action Lawsuits
The Challenges of Identifying & Collecting Data in Class Actions
The very definition of class actions—numerous similarly situated individuals—almost necessitates the existence of great volumes of data relevant to the case’s claims. The data associated with class claims can come in a wide variety of forms:
Property ownership records
Banking fees
Individual state tax returns
Service technician repair tickets
Oil and gas royalty payments
Retail transactions
Cell phone calls
Collection agent notes
Insurance premium payments
Customer contact information
Payroll and timesheet details
The computer systems that contain case-pertinent data are designed to perform specific functions to support the ongoing needs of the business. As such, it’s not common for these computer systems to natively support the accurate or comprehensive production of information related to the class claims.
Navigating through the myriad of technologists within a large organization to identify the person with the right knowledge is daunting. These individuals routinely understand only select systems, and often only portions of a specific system. Their expertise is in how the system is supposed to run, which may not be what is necessary to determine if the class-related information exists.
Our team has a truly unique combination of experience with computer system architecture, data analysis, and business understanding to be able to consult with plaintiff and defense counsel to recognize what data is relevant to the class action, identify the potential sources, confirm its existence, and communicate with technical resources to effectively produce the information in a usable format.
Solutions to Identifying & Collecting Data in Class Actions
We are retained as a consultant or expert by defense and plaintiff counsel in state and federal matters. Our data expert engagements provide a wide range of deliverables that include:
Explaining simply the purpose and design of relevant computer systems so counsel can effectively inquire about the systems
Identifying sources and availability of class data
Overcoming technical and data challenges created by computer systems being asked to respond to litigation needs outside of the standard use of the system
Navigating corporate structures to determine individuals who may have the necessary understanding of identified computer systems
Interacting with technical resources to explain the data needs of the case
Assisting counsel in preparing interrogatories and answers related to computer systems and data
Clearly preparing data requests to technical staff to ensure the correct data is produced in an efficient manner
Developing methods for identifying class members
Opining in affidavit, declaration, and expert report format about the availability and accessibility of case-related data
Providing oral opinion during deposition and trial regarding data sources
Credentials
Our team has an unmatched level of expertise and experience in class actions:
Our principal, Matthew Pohl, was Director of Business Intelligence at a $4B US office products company. In that role, he led a team developing a corporate data warehouse, requiring the understanding of the architecture and database design for a wide range of corporate systems and how data from those systems could be extracted, transformed, and loaded into the data warehouse. He was also an independent data warehouse consultant and worked on multiple data warehouse implementation projects.
Mr. Pohl was a member of Arthur Andersen’s litigation consulting practice where he led teams that acquired case-related data, analyzed the information, and developed computer software to determine class member eligibility and estimate financial damages.
Our team has worked with wide variety of data from hundreds of companies in litigation and class action matters.
Mr. Pohl has been retained as an expert in numerous federal and state jurisdictions.
Case Summaries
“Our firm had a positive experience working with the Herculean Team. In a relatively short timeframe, they were able to build a complex model for a data-heavy factual dispute, and their analysis of the data helped inform our options during litigation. The team was responsive, insightful, and clear in their communications.”
“[Mr. Pohl] seems to be a person whose word is his bond. Based on my experience, he is someone who can be trusted with confidence.”
“The quality of services provided by [Mr. Pohl’s firm] has been exceedingly high. Mr. Pohl and his entire team are professionals in every sense.”
“I have absolutely no hesitation recommending Matt Pohl as an expert in class action data compilation and analysis. Matt’s expertise was instrumental in helping us decipher literally hundreds of thousands of data entries from a major retailer’s POS system, which in turn allowed us to efficiently focus our discovery efforts, and ultimately expose weaknesses which led to a very favorable class settlement. I was particularly impressed with Matt’s willingness to make himself available to attend depositions and strategy conferences on short notice. On top of that, Matt and his staff were able to ‘work their magic’ substantially under budget.”
Let’s Talk
Contact us today to discuss how Herculean Litigation Solutions can partner with you on your class action lawsuit.