The New York City Law Department Names Rachel Kaufman as New Chief of E-Discovery

January 30, 2023

New York City Corporation Counsel Sylvia O. Hinds-Radix today announced the appointment of Rachel Kaufman as Chief of the Law Department’s E-Discovery Division, the team responsible for providing strategic legal guidance and technical support on all aspects of e-discovery related to the tens of thousands of pending and active cases against the City.

Kaufman brings more than a decade of experience in electronic discovery and litigation support to the role. Since the inception of the E-Discovery Division in 2015, she has served as an e-discovery counsel and more recently as the Division’s Deputy. Prior to that Kaufman was senior counsel in the Law Department’s Litigation Support Division.

“New York City is the litigation capital of the world, and the number of active e-discovery matters at the Law Department and their complexity have increased dramatically over the last several years,” said New York City Corporation Counsel Sylvia Hinds-Radix. “Rachel’s experience and expertise is just what we need to continue the steady leadership of this critically important Division, which is committed to helping the City meet its discovery obligations in the most efficient and cost-effective way possible.”

As different forms of electronic documents and communications proliferate and become increasingly common, and new discovery rules take effect, the volume of electronic data that must be collected, reviewed and produced in connection with the City’s cases is increasing rapidly. In 2022, the Law Department’s E-Discovery Division assisted on nearly 500 active matters, efforts requiring the collection of many terabytes of data, the processing of tens of millions of files, and the production of hundreds of thousands of documents. In the face of these growing e-discovery challenges, the Division has proven itself to be an industry leader in utilizing advanced analytical tools and technologies to minimize the burden on the City and increase efficiencies.

“I am honored to lead this group of dedicated professionals in service to the City,” said Rachel Kaufman, Chief of the Law Department’s E-Discovery Division. “Every day we work hard to provide the strategic e-discovery guidance and support the City needs to properly represent the interests of New Yorkers.”

About Rachel Kaufman

Since joining the Law Department, Rachel has served as an Evidence Acquisition Specialist, an E-Discovery Counsel, and most recently as E-Discovery’s Deputy Chief. As one of the original members of the E-Discovery Division, Rachel was actively involved in the development and implementation of the complex workflows that the Division relies upon each day to conduct the legal and technical aspects of e-discovery. Over the years, Rachel has served as an e-discovery specialist on hundreds of matters, successfully guiding case teams and client agencies through the e-discovery process. As Deputy Chief, Rachel supervised the Division's legal and technical work and oversaw operational and administrative aspects of the Division.

In addition to her e-discovery work, Rachel has served as a member of the Law Department’s Training Consortium and the Innovation and Strategy Council. Kaufman is a graduate of Brown University and Fordham School of Law. Prior to joining the Law Department, Kaufman worked as a litigation associate at Winston & Strawn where she specialized in complex commercial and patent infringement matters.

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