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KEYWORDSEARCHDESIGN · A GUIDE FOR UK LAWYERS How to Design Defensible Keyword Searches Terms, Syntax and the Method That Survives the Other Side's Scrutiny COMPUTER FORENSICS LAB

§ ABOUT THE AUTHOR PREPARED BY COMPUTER FORENSICS LAB E-DISCOVERY TEAM ESTABLISHED 2007 · LONDON ISO 17025-ALIGNED PROCEDURES SEARCH PROTOCOL DESIGN

§ CONTENTS In this guide 01 Executive summary 02 The problem in plain English: the list drafted from memory 03 Where terms come from: case theory and custodian vocabulary 04 Syntax that works: operators, wildcards and proximity 05 What keywords miss: the known failure modes 06 The negotiation: DRD tables, hit counts and refinement 07 Documentation: making the list defensible 08 Source architecture: where else the evidence lives 09 Worked examples 10 Common mistakes and technical limitations 11 Questions to ask · Suggested wording 12 Checklist and red flags · When to involve a digital forensic expert 13 Frequently asked questions 14 Glossary · References · Disclaimer · How a specialist laboratory can assist

§ 01 · ORIENTATION Executive summary THE HEADLINE POINT: TERMSCOMEFROMTHEDATA ' SOWNVOCABULARY, SYNTAXIS ENGINEEREDPERPLATFORM, ANDEVERYCHOICEISTESTEDANDDOCUMENTEDBEFORE IT IS AGREED

§ 02 · FIRST PRINCIPLES The problem in plain English: the list drafted from memory

§ 03 · THERAWMATERIAL Where terms come from: case theory and custodian vocabulary