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AI in Action: How One Law Firm Reviewed 28,000 Messages in Under a Week

Jul 22, 2025

A person sits at a computer reading messages

In litigation, time is never on your side. For one law firm client, the pressure mounted when they were handed more than 28,000 chat messages in Relativity Short Message Format (RSMF) for urgent review. Traditional TAR workflows weren’t going to cut it—not with the unstructured nature of chat data and the tight timeline. That’s where CDS stepped in.

The Challenge

The volume wasn’t the only issue. Chat data, particularly in RSMF, presents unique obstacles. Conventional review workflows struggle to isolate relevance when conversations are nonlinear or context-heavy. The firm faced high review costs, prolonged timelines, and the risk of missing key information.

The Solution

CDS deployed Relativity aiR for Review, an AI-powered engine designed to meet the challenge of modern data formats. Our experts configured a custom workflow tailored for short message review.

Using a sample of just 400 documents, aiR was trained to identify relevant content with precision. After just five hours of prompt engineering and model tuning, the AI was ready to go.

The results were immediate—and impressive.

Real Results

  • 28,000 documents reduced to 4,000 for manual review
  • 2,000 highly relevant documents surfaced
  • 22,000 documents excluded from human review
  • Review completed in under 1 week
  • Average cost of ~$0.30 per document across 24,000 files

Why It Worked

The combination of CDS’s expert-led AI implementation and the power of Relativity aiR allowed our client to focus their time and budget where it mattered most: on documents that could impact case strategy.

The Takeaway

When AI is thoughtfully applied, the results are tangible: faster insights, reduced costs, and more confidence in the outcome. That’s the kind of client success we strive for and why trusting the process makes all the difference.

To learn more about how CDS is using AI to drive real results for our clients, visit cdslegal.com or contact us at .

About the Author

<a href="https://cdslegal.com/team/" target="_blank">CDS Staff</a>

CDS Staff

Our leadership team and advisory consultants, project managers, and technical experts assist clients through all phases of the eDiscovery process.