Senior Information Governance Specialist II

About Kirkland & Ellis

At Kirkland & Ellis, we are united in our ambition and drive to move forward. We share core values that help us achieve excellence: collaboration, talent empowerment, service, inclusion, respect and gratitude. Our people are our greatest asset, and we invest in the brightest talent and encourage a diversity of perspectives and strengths to create dynamic teams that operate at the pinnacle of their field. Our talented professionals show up every day knowing they will engage in meaningful work, continuous learning and professional development.
 
As one of the world’s leading law firms, we serve a broad range of clients with market-leading practices in private equity, M&A and other complex corporate transactions; investment fund formation and alternative asset management; restructurings; high-stakes commercial and intellectual property litigation; and government, regulatory and internal investigations. We handle the most complicated and sophisticated legal matters because we don’t just meet industry standards, we create them. We bring innovation and entrepreneurialism to every engagement and, as a result, have long-standing client relationships with leading global corporations and financial sponsors. With 6,500 employees (including 3,500 lawyers) operating from 20 offices across the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Asia, we are one of the largest law firms in the world and a top financial performer.

Essential Job Functions

The Information Governance (IG), Senior Information Governance Specialist II role plans, executes, and/or supports one or more IG projects and services relating to internal collection of firm data. The individual in this position is a key player in daily work intake, assignment, quality review, and delivery of work product for on a team responsible for the internal collection and protection of email and other documents. The individual advises attorneys, paralegals, other legal staff, and administrative personnel on information governance-related content while delivering white glove service to Kirkland personnel and vendors. By ensuring that data is effectively collected, stored, and protected, the individual helps drive results in support of the firm’s strategic objectives and maintains a high standard of information integrity and protection.

Responsibilities include collaborating with internal requestors and key stakeholders, including but not limited to IT personnel and Senior Risk Management leadership on high visibility matters and ongoing process improvement projects. The role also facilitates communication across business support units  and legal practice groups.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

The Senior Information Governance Specialist II position supports the following areas under the Director of Data Protection, the Director of Information Governance, and the Senior Director of Risk Management.

ELECTRONIC DISCOVERY:

With minimal management oversight, the Senior Information Governance Specialist II position collects information related to subpoenas, RFPs, and other requests and demands directed to the Firm, and general information requests from Kirkland personnel Duties include, but are not limited to:

• Coordinate with legal and administrative requesters to determine data targets, custodians, storage locations, and collection goals and justifications.
• Work with requesters to focus collections as narrowly as possible to avoid collecting unrelated data.
• Be cognizant of deadlines and manage expectations regarding turnaround times.
• Advise on search strategies, syntax, and issues.
• Explain complex electronic discovery situations and issues in plain language.
• Search within and export from the Firm’s email archive tool, iManage DMS, and Relativity.
• Prepare data for review, i.e., process in Relativity, and investigate and resolve processing errors.
• Handle post-processing activities in Relativity, e.g., searching, batching, creating export sets and productions.
• Work with the Firm’s Litigation & Practice Technology team and outside electronic discovery vendors as necessary and appropriate to facilitate the review and production of data sets.
• Evaluate conflicts between requesters and data sources and address or escalate as necessary.
• Assist with creating and updating process and best practices documentation.
• Provide training and user support to lawyers, paralegals and other support staff on litigation technology software and systems.
• Liaise with IT to test and enhance collections-related systems.

DATA PROTECTION:

Ensure that the following activities occur in accordance with Firm approved Information Governance policies and procedures. Duties include, but are not limited to:

• Develop guidance, processes, and tools / controls to ensure Firm data is appropriately structured and secured.
• Utilize database skills to effectively analyze large data sets, and recommend solutions for the ongoing classification, access, and disposition of data.
• Develop migration strategies and validation techniques to ensure data integrity of client data across firm systems.
• Support Data Privacy processes related to Data Subject Requests.
• Coordinate the work of other IG staff involved in Data Protection projects.
• Drive results on Data Protection projects to reduce costs and/or risks for the firm.

The Senior Information Governance Specialist II position is expected to:

• Identify and contain risk relating to information governance and foster a compliance culture.
• Provide input to management for practical recommendations and solutions to complex and/or technical issues that relate to the management of client and firm administrative information.
• Lead cross-functional teams to ensure appropriate governance of information management practices at the Firm.
• Coordinate the development and maintenance of supporting procedures and processes.
• Liaise and foster productive working relationships with attorneys and others needing assistance with information governance issues.
• Lead the response to information requests from partners and other internal and external parties.
• Respond proactively to both business and project issues and escalate issues as necessary.
• Perform duties after scheduled work hours and on weekends and holidays, as needed to meet the business demands of the Firm.

Qualifications & Requirements

Candidates with an educational background from a wide variety of disciplines including information technology, legal, compliance, information management, and/or records management or equivalent experience will be considered.

Required:

• An accredited undergraduate degree.
• Minimum of 10 years of e-discovery experience.
• Demonstrated proficiency in creating, securing, using, and administering Relativity workspaces, including the processing and loading of data.
• Subject matter expert in the litigation lifecycle and its impact on eDiscovery.
• Advanced knowledge of the Electronic Discovery Reference Model (EDRM).
• Self-motivated, creative, and detail-oriented individual with a strong knowledge of information management and/or information governance processes and technologies.
• Aptitude and interest in information technologies, critical thinking, and interpersonal skills
• Capable of analyzing data, understanding technology, effectively prioritizing tasks/projects, and communicating complex and/or technical topics relating to Information Governance to those who have no prior knowledge of the firm’s systems and policies.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, time management, recordkeeping, analytical, planning, and leadership skills.
• Advanced proficiency in MS Office applications, e.g., Outlook, Excel.
• Experience with remote collaboration applications, e.g., Zoom, MS Teams.

Preferred:

• Previous law firm or in-house legal experience.
• Solid working knowledge and understanding of Records Management / Information Governance principles.
• Experience using and administering email archive systems, iManage DMS, Brainspace, Shared Drives, SharePoint, SQL, MS Purview, M365, PowerShell, and Command Prompt.
• Advanced proficiency using advanced text editors, e.g., NotePad++ to manipulate structured data including regular expressions.
• Business analysis and project management experience.

Certificates, Licensures, Registrations:

• Relativity Certified Administrator preferred.

How to Apply

Thank you for your interest in Kirkland & Ellis LLP.  To complete an application and submit your resume, please click "Apply Now."

Equal Employment Opportunity

All employment decisions, including the recruiting, hiring, placement, training availability, promotion, compensation, evaluation, disciplinary actions, and termination of employment (if necessary) are made without regard to the employee’s race, color, creed, religion, sex, pregnancy or childbirth, personal appearance, family responsibilities, sexual orientation or preference, gender identity, political affiliation, source of income, place of residence, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, age, marital status, military veteran status, unfavorable discharge from military service, physical or mental disability, or on any other basis prohibited by applicable law.

Closing Statement

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