Winning at Trial by Harnessing the Power of Structured and Unstructured Data
By Tyson Slesnick, CPA, CFE, Forensic Data Analyst
In the world of law and accounting, we thrive on structure and organization. Rules of evidence? Structured. Case precedents? Organized. Coffee in the break room? Your guess is as good as mine. But when it comes to data, not all data comes neatly packaged with a bow on top. What if the key evidence in your case isn’t in a clearly labeled spreadsheet but buried in an email thread?
At a high level, data can be broadly categorized into two types: structured data and its evil sibling—unstructured data. If you’ve ever dealt with a complex case involving diverse types of information, you’re likely somewhat familiar with the trade-offs between the two. In some situations, clean, well-organized structured data provides clear-cut answers, leading to straightforward solutions. However, more often than not, the insights or evidence you’re seeking are hidden in layers of complexity, requiring a blend of both structured and unstructured data to uncover the full picture.
A legal metaphor can provide valuable insight into understanding these two concepts more clearly.
Structured Data: The Star Witness
Structured data is the witness you love to see on the stand—clear, concise, and easy to directly examine. Think spreadsheets, databases, or any data that lives in neatly labeled rows and columns. It’s like your favorite client who shows up to court with all the right documents, neatly filed, and color-coded for good measure. Simply said, structured data helps determine what happened, when, and by whom—ideal for timelines and transaction analysis.
Structured data is gold. Billing records, general ledgers, case schedules, and client contact lists fall into this category. Tools like SQL databases are great for storing and retrieving structured data, making it easier to track billable hours or find that one needle in a haystack.
Unstructured Data: The Rogue Witness
Now, let’s talk about unstructured data—the wildcard witness who shows up to the stand wearing a Hawaiian shirt, flip-flops and speaks in riddles. This is the messy world of emails, PDFs, audio recordings, and that one cryptic Post-it note someone stuck on a computer monitor. It doesn’t fit neatly into rows and columns, which makes it harder to analyze but no less valuable. One can think of unstructured data as data that explains why and how—providing insights into intent, motive, and deception.
Unstructured data is unpredictable but it often holds the hidden context behind structured facts, revealing the ‘why’ behind financial movements and communication patterns. As such, unstructured data can offer critical insights. That offhand email thread? It could be the key to a major case or point you in the right direction of a hidden bank account. The deposition video? A goldmine of nonverbal cues.
Managing unstructured data requires tools like document management systems, AI-powered search engines, or forensic experts to turn chaos into clarity. Unstructured data, while inherently chaotic, can be tamed by introducing elements of structure through processes like tagging, categorization, and metadata extraction. Metadata (information about the data itself) can serve as a bridge between unstructured content and structured analysis.
Why It Matters: Structuring Your Success
Ignoring unstructured data is like ignoring half the evidence in your case—it’s a gamble you don’t want to take. Law firms need to harness the power of both structured and unstructured data to build compelling arguments that hold up in court. Equally important, unstructured data needs to be presented in a way that makes sense to jury—a picture may actually be worth more than 1,000 words!
The tricky aspect of unstructured data lies in its complexity. It can be difficult to manage and often demands specialized knowledge in storage solutions, organization and presentation. Unlocking its power is not for the faint of heart. Preparing this data for courtroom presentation typically requires a high level of technical acumen and a strategic approach to ensure it is both accessible and admissible.
Where we come in
At Morones Analytics, we specialize in transforming complex data challenges into actionable insights tailored for law firms. Whether you’re dealing with structured datasets or untangling the chaos of unstructured information, our expertise ensures you get the evidence and clarity you need. From advanced data analysis and visualization to uncovering hidden patterns in data, we provide comprehensive solutions to support your cases and streamline your operations.
The Verdict
Structured data keeps the lights on; unstructured data wins the big cases. Invest in people and assets that help you organize and analyze both types, and you’ll be the firm that’s not just reactive but proactive. And don’t forget, whether it’s spreadsheets, emails or Post-it notes, every piece of data deserves its day in court.
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Tyson Slesnick, CPA, CFE supports our senior testifying experts by investigating and distilling large sets of financial data. He applies his advanced data analytics skills to find key insights and evidence that will form the basis of reported opinions.
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