ACEDS EXAM QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS | LATEST
2026/2027 UPDATE WITH GUARANTEED PASS | GRADED
A+ (VERIFIED) - 134 Questions and Answers Already Graded
A+ Premium Exam Tested And Verified
Subject Area Electronic Discovery and Litigation Support
Description This rigorous exam covers the core competencies required for Certified
E-Discovery Specialists, including legal, technical, and procedural aspects of
electronic discovery. Topics range from preservation and legal holds to advanced
analytics, international data transfers, and cost allocation. Candidates must
demonstrate deep conceptual understanding and ability to apply rules and best
practices in complex scenarios.
Expected Grade A+
Total Questions 134
Duration 3 hours
Learning Outcomes 1. Analyze spoliation risks and evaluate appropriate sanctions
2. Evaluate defensibility of technology-assisted review workflows
3. Distinguish between forms of production and their legal implications
4. Apply proportionality principles to discovery requests and responses
5. Navigate cross-border data privacy regulations in e-discovery
Accreditation This examination meets the rigorous standards set by the Association of Certified
E-Discovery Specialists (ACEDS) and is designed to assess proficiency at the
level expected of leading U.S. law firms and corporate legal departments.
Page 1
,1. A party failed to issue a legal hold until after a key employee deleted
relevant emails. The court must determine sanctions. Which standard of
culpability imposes the highest burden on the requesting party?
A. Negligence
B. Gross negligence
C. Willful or intentional conduct
D. Bad faith
Answer: D. Bad faith
Bad faith is the highest standard, requiring evidence of intent to deprive the other
party of evidence. Lower standards (negligence, gross negligence) are more easily
met but may not warrant severe sanctions. Willful conduct is also high but bad
faith is the highest culpability standard under Rule 37(e).
2. During technology-assisted review (TAR), a seed set of documents is
reviewed and used to train the algorithm. Which statistical measure best
evaluates whether the model has been trained to stability?
A. Cohen's kappa coefficient
B. Precision and recall
C. The F1 score
D. The convergence of the learning curve
Answer: D. The convergence of the learning curve
Stability in TAR is indicated when the learning curve flattens, meaning additional
training documents do not significantly change the model's predictions. Cohen's
kappa and recall/precision measure agreement or accuracy but not stability.
Convergence is the standard indicator for training completion.
Page 2
,3. Under the revised Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(e), a court may impose sanctions only if
it finds that the party failed to take reasonable steps to preserve electronically
stored information (ESI). Which of the following is a relevant factor in
determining reasonableness?
A. The cost of preservation
B. The novelty of the claims
C. The party's litigation history
D. The sophistication of the party's legal counsel
Answer: A. The cost of preservation
Reasonableness of preservation efforts considers proportionality, including the
burden and cost of preservation relative to the value of the case. While a party's
sophistication may be considered, the rule explicitly calls for a balancing of
factors, with cost being a primary one.
4. In cross-border e-discovery, what is the primary conflict between U.S.
discovery obligations and the European Union's General Data Protection
Regulation (GDPR)?
A. GDPR prohibits the processing of personal data for litigation
B. U.S. courts require production of relevant ESI, but GDPR restricts transfers of
personal data outside the EU
C. GDPR requires data deletion within 30 days of closure, conflicting with
preservation duties
D. U.S. law exempts foreign data from discovery under the Hague Evidence
Convention
Answer: B. U.S. courts require production of relevant ESI, but GDPR
restricts transfers of personal data outside the EU
The primary tension is that U.S. discovery obliges parties to produce relevant
ESI, but GDPR prohibits transferring personal data to third countries without
adequate safeguards or specific derogations. Conflict arises when data subjects
are in the EU and data is sought for U.S. litigation.
Page 3
, 5. During data processing, a set of email files contains numerous duplicate
attachments. Which deduplication strategy yields the most defensible and
complete dataset for review?
A. Global deduplication based on hash value of entire file including metadata
B. Custodian-level deduplication comparing hash values of file content only
C. Near-deduplication using similarity thresholds to group similar attachments
D. No deduplication; all files are preserved to avoid spoliation accusations
Answer: B. Custodian-level deduplication comparing hash values of file
content only
Custodian-level deduplication (content hash only) retains one copy per custodian,
which is defensible because each custodian's copy may contain unique metadata
or context. Global deduplication (including metadata) may eliminate files with
critical metadata differences, risking gaps in evidence. Near-deduplication can be
too aggressive for exact duplicates.
6. A request for production seeks 'all communications regarding alleged patent
infringement.' The responding party produces a privilege log. Under Fed. R.
Civ. P. 26(b)(5), what is the minimum information that must be included in the
log for each withheld document?
A. Date, author, recipients, subject, and privilege asserted
B. Date, author, recipients, and a summary of the content
C. Only the privilege asserted and the number of pages
D. Author, recipients, and a list of keywords used
Answer: A. Date, author, recipients, subject, and privilege asserted
Rule 26(b)(5) requires a description of each document sufficient to enable the
requesting party to assess the privilege claim, including date, author, recipients,
subject, and the specific privilege asserted. Actual summary of content is not
required, but the description must not reveal privileged information.
Page 4
2026/2027 UPDATE WITH GUARANTEED PASS | GRADED
A+ (VERIFIED) - 134 Questions and Answers Already Graded
A+ Premium Exam Tested And Verified
Subject Area Electronic Discovery and Litigation Support
Description This rigorous exam covers the core competencies required for Certified
E-Discovery Specialists, including legal, technical, and procedural aspects of
electronic discovery. Topics range from preservation and legal holds to advanced
analytics, international data transfers, and cost allocation. Candidates must
demonstrate deep conceptual understanding and ability to apply rules and best
practices in complex scenarios.
Expected Grade A+
Total Questions 134
Duration 3 hours
Learning Outcomes 1. Analyze spoliation risks and evaluate appropriate sanctions
2. Evaluate defensibility of technology-assisted review workflows
3. Distinguish between forms of production and their legal implications
4. Apply proportionality principles to discovery requests and responses
5. Navigate cross-border data privacy regulations in e-discovery
Accreditation This examination meets the rigorous standards set by the Association of Certified
E-Discovery Specialists (ACEDS) and is designed to assess proficiency at the
level expected of leading U.S. law firms and corporate legal departments.
Page 1
,1. A party failed to issue a legal hold until after a key employee deleted
relevant emails. The court must determine sanctions. Which standard of
culpability imposes the highest burden on the requesting party?
A. Negligence
B. Gross negligence
C. Willful or intentional conduct
D. Bad faith
Answer: D. Bad faith
Bad faith is the highest standard, requiring evidence of intent to deprive the other
party of evidence. Lower standards (negligence, gross negligence) are more easily
met but may not warrant severe sanctions. Willful conduct is also high but bad
faith is the highest culpability standard under Rule 37(e).
2. During technology-assisted review (TAR), a seed set of documents is
reviewed and used to train the algorithm. Which statistical measure best
evaluates whether the model has been trained to stability?
A. Cohen's kappa coefficient
B. Precision and recall
C. The F1 score
D. The convergence of the learning curve
Answer: D. The convergence of the learning curve
Stability in TAR is indicated when the learning curve flattens, meaning additional
training documents do not significantly change the model's predictions. Cohen's
kappa and recall/precision measure agreement or accuracy but not stability.
Convergence is the standard indicator for training completion.
Page 2
,3. Under the revised Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(e), a court may impose sanctions only if
it finds that the party failed to take reasonable steps to preserve electronically
stored information (ESI). Which of the following is a relevant factor in
determining reasonableness?
A. The cost of preservation
B. The novelty of the claims
C. The party's litigation history
D. The sophistication of the party's legal counsel
Answer: A. The cost of preservation
Reasonableness of preservation efforts considers proportionality, including the
burden and cost of preservation relative to the value of the case. While a party's
sophistication may be considered, the rule explicitly calls for a balancing of
factors, with cost being a primary one.
4. In cross-border e-discovery, what is the primary conflict between U.S.
discovery obligations and the European Union's General Data Protection
Regulation (GDPR)?
A. GDPR prohibits the processing of personal data for litigation
B. U.S. courts require production of relevant ESI, but GDPR restricts transfers of
personal data outside the EU
C. GDPR requires data deletion within 30 days of closure, conflicting with
preservation duties
D. U.S. law exempts foreign data from discovery under the Hague Evidence
Convention
Answer: B. U.S. courts require production of relevant ESI, but GDPR
restricts transfers of personal data outside the EU
The primary tension is that U.S. discovery obliges parties to produce relevant
ESI, but GDPR prohibits transferring personal data to third countries without
adequate safeguards or specific derogations. Conflict arises when data subjects
are in the EU and data is sought for U.S. litigation.
Page 3
, 5. During data processing, a set of email files contains numerous duplicate
attachments. Which deduplication strategy yields the most defensible and
complete dataset for review?
A. Global deduplication based on hash value of entire file including metadata
B. Custodian-level deduplication comparing hash values of file content only
C. Near-deduplication using similarity thresholds to group similar attachments
D. No deduplication; all files are preserved to avoid spoliation accusations
Answer: B. Custodian-level deduplication comparing hash values of file
content only
Custodian-level deduplication (content hash only) retains one copy per custodian,
which is defensible because each custodian's copy may contain unique metadata
or context. Global deduplication (including metadata) may eliminate files with
critical metadata differences, risking gaps in evidence. Near-deduplication can be
too aggressive for exact duplicates.
6. A request for production seeks 'all communications regarding alleged patent
infringement.' The responding party produces a privilege log. Under Fed. R.
Civ. P. 26(b)(5), what is the minimum information that must be included in the
log for each withheld document?
A. Date, author, recipients, subject, and privilege asserted
B. Date, author, recipients, and a summary of the content
C. Only the privilege asserted and the number of pages
D. Author, recipients, and a list of keywords used
Answer: A. Date, author, recipients, subject, and privilege asserted
Rule 26(b)(5) requires a description of each document sufficient to enable the
requesting party to assess the privilege claim, including date, author, recipients,
subject, and the specific privilege asserted. Actual summary of content is not
required, but the description must not reveal privileged information.
Page 4
