On July 20, 1969, the United States put the first man on the moon. “That’s one small step for a man,” he said. “One giant leap for mankind. And then, in May of 2020, Elon Musk made history by launching astronauts into space from U.S. soil for the first time in nine years. Space exploration embodies the American spirit of discovery, the possibility of boldly facing new challenges “not because they are easy, but because they are hard.” Why is it we put such large quantities of effort, time, ingenuity, and money towards the discovery of space but have not applied that same spirit to our data? Why have we not made the “giant leaps” necessary to forever change the lives of those impacted by data?

Legal firms are looking to the tech industry to gain a competitive advantage in and out of the courtroom, but the age-old advice to “walk before you run” has come to characterize the partnership. Before law firms can employ artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to perform Legal Research, Litigation Strategy, Contract Review, eDiscovery, or even simpler tasks such as effectively employing Case Management or Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software, they must first develop and invest in a Data Quality Strategy. Without quality data, law firms cannot create meaningful data analytics or effectively conduct thorough eDiscovery to protect their clients.