Just because a resource exists doesn't necessarily mean that people know where to find it. It's a sentiment that may hold especially true to e-discovery and all of its many rules, forms and procedures. To that end, Reed Smith's records and e-discovery (RED) practice group released a new app Monday geared toward condensing many of those items into something that can fit on a smartphone.

The E-Discovery App was developed with the help of the firm's tech subsidiary GravityStack and is available to download free of charge at the Apple App Store and Google Play. On the app, users will find resources such as a General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) cross-border checklist, document review management insights and a solution provider directory.

But while organizations like EDRM and the Sedona Conference may provide a similar knowledge base, deploying an app may offer some very practical advantages to law firms looking to cut costs and bolster efficiency. For example, Reed Smith has typically rendered its e-discovery guidance in print and packaged it into a manual for the firm's litigators. But David Cohen, a partner at Reed Smith and chair of RED, said that the annual copying costs totaled thousands of dollars.

"Now we can update it in real time on the app and everybody has an immediate reference," Cohen said.

However, even app updates require a time commitment given just how quickly the e-discovery space tends to evolve. Cohen noted that he has a weekly meeting scheduled with the firm's app team to discuss any additions or improvements that may need to be made. He stressed that maintaining an app such as Reed Smith's is far from a one-and-done endeavor.

"And that might be one of the things in the past that has discouraged people from creating this kind of an app. … To keep it relevant, you're going to have to constantly update it," Cohen said.

To be sure, Reed Smith is not the only firm to venture into the app game. Latham & Watkins released a Foreign Direct Investment Regimes app last October, with Slaughter and May rolling out its mental health and well-being app Unmind the same month.

Mary Mack, CEO and chief legal technologist at EDRM, believes that more law firms will continue to produce similar products, especially with the advent of legal-focused app stores like Reynen Court. But with the well-established presence of e-discovery resources such as EDRM or Sedona, is a law firm-produced app that touches on the same subject matter really necessary? Mack, who received an early look at Reed Smith's e-discovery app, thinks so. She cited the potential value gain for attorneys that are not well-versed in e-discovery who could benefit from the presence of an easy-to-reference cheat sheet that fits in their phone.

"Nobody thinks anything of people looking on their phone during a meeting. They tend to sometimes look at you a little askance if you're typing on your computer," Mack said.

While the user value may be rooted squarely in portable knowledge, Reed Smith and its attorneys may be getting their cut in time saved. Cohen said that while he doesn't like charging clients for simple e-discovery-related questions or tasks, the alternative is to potentially spend a chunk of an otherwise billable hour looking for the right form.

"I can't tell you how many times somebody calls me up and says, 'Hey, do you have a sample legal hold notice that I can adapt to my case?'" Cohen said.

The e-discovery app stands to potentially streamline that process with a portfolio of readily available forms that users can access without having to dial their attorney. But aside from the efficiency boost, Cohen indicated that Reed Smith isn't expecting to see any other kind of monetary return on the project, even if there is an audience.

"I think that we're going to see a lot of interest in this app because a lot of people are involved in the e-discovery industry and could use access to these types of resources," Cohen said.