Denise E. Backhouse

Reinforcing the firm's commitment to providing its clients with leading-edge solutions in the rapidly developing area of eDiscovery, Denise E. Backhouse provides focused guidance and expertise on information governance and electronic discovery matters to Littler's lawyers and their clients, including:

  • Case and client-specific advice about meeting preservation obligations
  • "Meet and confer" obligations
  • Efficient and effective data harvesting strategies
  • Review and production, and implementation of cost-shifting and cost reduction strategies
  • Cross-border eDiscovery and international data protection and privacy issues

Denise is an elected member of the American Law Institute, a founding member of the Board of Directors of the International Data Law Association, and a founding director of the Cardozo Data Law Initiative (CDLI), Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University. Denise served as Co-Chair and on the Steering Committee of the American Bar Association Cross-Border Institute. She serves on the Working Group Series Leadership Council of The Sedona Conference®, is a former member of the Steering Committee of The Sedona Conference's Working Group on International Electronic Information Management, Discovery and Disclosure (WG6), and is actively involved in The Sedona Conference’s Working Groups on Electronic Document Retention and Production (WG1) and Data Security and Privacy Liability (WG11). Denise is also a Certified Information Privacy Professional/Europe (CIPP/E). She is a frequent author, speaker, and lecturer on eDiscovery and data protection issues, including on such topics as developing trends; cross-border discovery, data privacy; and privilege and ethics in eDiscovery.

During law school, Denise interned for Hon. Theodore Katz of the U. S. District Court, Southern District of New York, under the Columbia clerkship training program. She was a research assistant for Professor Martha Albertson Fineman and served as managing editor for the Journal of Law and Social Problems.

Credentials & Recognition

Speaking Engagements

Presenter, Global Perspectives: Navigating Employment Disputes Across Borders

  • April 9, 2025
  • JAMS, New York, NY

Moderator, Draft International Litigation Principles, Second Edition

  • March 7, 2025
  • The Sedona Conference Working Group 6 Annual Meeting - The Sedona Conference®, Los Angeles, CA

Dialogue Leader, Operationalizing the Hague Evidence Convention and Other Mechanisms for Cross-Border Data Transfers

  • March 7, 2025
  • The Sedona Conference Working Group 6 Semi-Annual Meeting - The Sedona Conference®, Los Angeles, CA

Additional Thought Leadership

Detecting Fake Evidence - Producing Counsel & Receiving Party Perspective

  • November 18, 2022
  • Georgetown 2022 Advanced eDiscovery Institute

Securing Client Communications and Data: Requirements for Attorneys Practicing Labor and Employment Law Internationally

  • November 10, 2022
  • ABA 16th Annual Section of Labor & Employment Conference

Procedure Beyond Rules: Are ESI Protocols as Helpful as We Think They Are?

  • November 19, 2021
  • Georgetown 2021 Advanced eDiscovery Institute

Books & Book Chapters

Cross-Border Discovery: Grappling with Non-US Privacy Restrictions

  • The Federal Judges' Guide to Discovery 4th Edition, EDI: The Electronic Discovery Institute
  • Chapter Author
  • February 2025

The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

  • International Corporate Practice, Practicing Law Institute
  • Chapter Co-Author
  • March 2022

Cyber Evidence, Corporate Criminal Defense: Compliance, Investigation, and Trial Strategies

  • Aspen Publishers
  • Chapter Author
  • 2012 and 2013

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