In litigation, understanding what happened is only part of the challenge. Attorneys must also establish when events occurred, who was involved, and which documents support each fact.
A single case may involve thousands of emails, text messages, contracts, deposition transcripts, and other electronically stored information (ESI). While document review helps identify relevant evidence, organizing that information into a coherent case narrative often requires additional time and preparation.
Traditionally, attorneys have relied on spreadsheets to build chronologies, separate folders to organize exhibits, and word-processing documents to prepare deposition outlines. As new evidence emerges, keeping these resources consistent can become increasingly difficult.
Everlaw's Storybuilder offers a more integrated approach by connecting case timelines, supporting evidence, deposition preparation, and exhibit management within the same eDiscovery platform.
For Hawaiʻi law firms handling civil litigation, business disputes, employment matters, and complex investigations, understanding these tools can help streamline the transition from document review to case preparation.
What Is Everlaw Storybuilder?
Everlaw is a cloud-based eDiscovery platform designed to support electronic document review, investigations, and litigation preparation.
Within Everlaw, Storybuilder is a collaborative toolkit that allows legal teams to organize key evidence, construct case timelines, prepare deposition materials, and develop arguments.
Rather than treating document review and litigation preparation as entirely separate activities, Storybuilder connects the information identified during review with the facts and narratives attorneys develop throughout a matter.
Its core components include:
Fact Timelines: Organize significant events and information chronologically.
Evidence Page: Manage important documents, document highlights, and deposition testimony.
People Profiles: Track individuals and their relationships to the case.
Depositions: Prepare outlines, reference evidence, and manage deposition exhibits.
Drafts: Develop legal outlines, memoranda, and other written work product with linked evidence.
Together, these tools allow attorneys to move from identifying evidence to organizing and presenting it without repeatedly rebuilding their work across disconnected files.
Source: Everlaw — Introduction to Storybuilder
1. Fact Timelines: Turning Documents Into a Case Chronology
One of Storybuilder's most useful features is its Fact Timeline, a structured workspace for organizing important events and information throughout a case.
A Fact represents a discrete event or piece of information. Each Fact can include a date, description, associated individuals, supporting evidence, labels, and relationships to other Facts.
For example, in a commercial contract dispute, an attorney might create Facts for:
The initial contract negotiation.
The execution of the agreement.
A disputed communication between the parties.
The date an alleged contractual breach occurred.
A subsequent meeting or attempt to resolve the dispute.
Each event can then be connected to the documents or testimony supporting it.
More Than a Spreadsheet
Unlike a traditional spreadsheet chronology, Everlaw's Fact Timelines connect case events directly to evidence stored within the eDiscovery platform.
Attorneys can create Facts manually or import existing chronologies using CSV or XLSX files.
The platform also supports multiple timelines within a single Story, allowing teams to organize separate issues, claims, or phases of litigation.
For example, an employment dispute might benefit from separate timelines covering an employee's performance history, internal communications, and the events surrounding termination.
Everlaw's advanced timeline view visually represents the spacing between dated Facts, helping users identify periods of concentrated activity or gaps in the chronology.
The advantage is not simply arranging events by date. It is connecting those events to the evidence that supports them.
Source: Everlaw — Storybuilder Fact Timelines
2. Connect Each Fact to Its Supporting Evidence
A case chronology is only as useful as the evidence supporting it.
In a traditional workflow, an attorney may maintain a spreadsheet listing significant events alongside document control numbers or Bates references.
When the attorney needs to examine the underlying evidence, they must locate the corresponding file or search for it in a document review platform.
Storybuilder helps reduce this separation.
Within Everlaw, attorneys can associate Facts with relevant documents, document highlights, and deposition testimony.
For example, a Fact describing a disputed meeting might be linked to:
An email scheduling the meeting.
A calendar invitation.
A memorandum discussing the meeting.
Deposition testimony describing what occurred.
These connections allow the legal team to review the evidence associated with a particular event as the case develops.
Why This Matters During Litigation
As new evidence emerges, the timeline can be updated to reflect additional information.
Suppose a reviewer discovers an email suggesting that a disputed conversation occurred two weeks earlier than originally believed.
Rather than updating a separate spreadsheet, evidence folder, and deposition outline independently, the team can update the relevant Fact and its supporting information within Storybuilder.
This creates a more consistent foundation for case preparation.
It is important to remember that a Fact Timeline reflects the legal team's developing understanding of the case. Attorneys must still assess the accuracy, reliability, and significance of the underlying evidence.
Source: Everlaw — Best Practices to Use Fact Timelines Throughout Your Case
3. The Evidence Page: Organizing Key Documents and Testimony
While Fact Timelines organize the events of a case, Storybuilder's Evidence page helps attorneys manage the materials supporting those events.
The Evidence page serves as a collaborative workspace for important documents, highlights, and deposition testimony.
Users can organize evidence through labels associated with people, issues, and other categories.
For example, in a business litigation matter, a team might use labels such as:
Contract negotiations
Financial records
Internal communications
Key witnesses
Alleged misconduct
Evidence can also be associated with existing Facts or used to create new Facts as the case develops.
From Document Review to Case Preparation
During document review, attorneys may identify hundreds of potentially important records.
Not every responsive document will ultimately become a deposition exhibit or play a central role in the case narrative.
The Evidence page provides a way to distinguish particularly important materials from the broader review population and organize them for subsequent use.
This can help attorneys avoid repeatedly searching through large document collections when preparing for witness interviews, depositions, motions, or trial.
Source: Everlaw — Storybuilder Evidence Page
4. Exhibit Management: From Case Timeline to Deposition Preparation
One of the most practical benefits of Storybuilder is how its timeline and evidence organization features connect with deposition preparation and exhibit management.
Traditionally, preparing deposition exhibits may involve exporting documents from a review platform, saving them into folders, creating a separate exhibit list, and manually cross-referencing documents within an outline.
When a document is added or removed, the exhibit list and associated references may also need to be updated.
Everlaw provides a more integrated workflow.
Within Storybuilder's Deposition and Draft tools, attorneys can reference documents and Facts directly in their written outlines.
Documents and testimony referenced in those materials are automatically gathered into an Exhibits view, where users can organize and export the supporting evidence.
How Everlaw's Exhibits View Works
The Exhibits view can display documents and testimony referenced in a Deposition or Draft.
Depending on the user's settings, it can also include document highlights, attachment families, and evidence associated with referenced Facts.
Users can configure the information displayed and export exhibits in supported formats, including:
CSV: A structured exhibit list containing selected details and metadata.
PDF: An export that can include document images, testimony, annotations, and a table of contents.
ZIP of individual PDFs: Separately packaged exhibit files for external use.
For deposition preparation, this can reduce the manual work involved in gathering evidence from multiple locations.
Importantly, the Exhibits view is not a substitute for final attorney review. Exhibit selection, numbering, redactions, completeness, and compliance with applicable procedures still require verification.
Source: Everlaw — Exhibits in Depositions and Drafts
5. Preparing for Depositions With Timelines and Linked Exhibits
Depositions require attorneys to understand both the chronology of events and the documents associated with each witness.
Storybuilder allows legal teams to bring those resources together during preparation.
For example, imagine an attorney preparing to depose a former employee in a trade secret dispute.
The attorney may create a timeline identifying the employee's resignation, communications with a competitor, and subsequent activity involving confidential information.
Each event can be associated with relevant emails, records, or other evidence.
When preparing the deposition outline, the attorney can reference those Facts and supporting documents within Storybuilder.
During the Deposition
Everlaw's deposition tools also support:
Creating and editing deposition outlines.
Referencing documents and testimony.
Assigning exhibit numbers to documents.
Collaborating through internal chat.
Using a deposition timer to timestamp notes and communications.
When a completed transcript is uploaded, marked exhibit references can be linked to the corresponding documents, allowing users to access the referenced evidence directly.
This can be particularly helpful when reviewing testimony after a deposition or preparing for subsequent proceedings.
Instead of treating the timeline, deposition outline, and exhibit list as separate work products, attorneys can use them as connected parts of the same case narrative.
Sources: Everlaw — Deposition Preparation and Conducting a Deposition
6. A Practical Example: Building a Case Timeline and Exhibit List
Consider a hypothetical Hawaiʻi commercial litigation matter involving a disputed service agreement.
During document review, the legal team identifies approximately 20 documents relevant to the alleged breach.
Among those documents are contract drafts, emails, internal reports, and correspondence between the parties.
Each event could be created as a Fact and linked to its supporting evidence.
As the team prepares for depositions, the relevant Facts and documents can be referenced in deposition outlines.
The associated documents can then appear in the Exhibits view for review and export.
If additional evidence changes the timeline, the team can update the relevant Facts and their supporting materials.
The result is a more connected workflow from document review to deposition preparation.
7. What Are the Benefits for Hawaiʻi Law Firms?
For Hawaiʻi law firms, Storybuilder may provide several operational advantages, particularly when managing matters involving significant volumes of electronic evidence.
Reduced Administrative Work
Connecting Facts, evidence, outlines, and exhibits can reduce repetitive tasks such as manually updating separate spreadsheets and document lists.
Improved Case Organization
Attorneys can organize significant events and supporting documents within a shared case narrative.
More Efficient Deposition Preparation
Linked evidence and exhibit management features can make it easier to identify and prepare documents for witness examinations.
Better Team Collaboration
Attorneys, paralegals, and litigation support professionals can work from shared case materials, subject to appropriate access permissions.
Greater Visibility Into Evidentiary Gaps
Fact Timelines can help teams identify events that lack supporting evidence or periods where additional investigation may be necessary.
These benefits may be particularly valuable when legal teams are working under demanding deadlines or coordinating preparation across multiple offices and locations.
8. Important Considerations Before Using Storybuilder
Although Storybuilder provides useful case preparation tools, successful implementation still requires planning and attorney oversight.
Establish consistent naming conventions. Facts, labels, and evidence descriptions should be organized consistently so team members can locate information.
Verify dates and supporting evidence. A document's creation date is not necessarily the date an event occurred. Attorneys should confirm chronology details before relying on them.
Distinguish established facts from allegations. A timeline may include disputed events or working theories that have not yet been proven.
Review exhibits before export. Confirm exhibit numbering, document completeness, annotations, redactions, and the intended audience for exported materials.
Manage access permissions. Storybuilder includes permission controls for Stories, Depositions, and Drafts. Teams should ensure access is appropriate for the matter.
Understand the limits of the platform. Storybuilder helps organize and prepare evidence, but it does not replace legal analysis, evidentiary authentication, or courtroom presentation requirements.
A well-organized timeline is useful only when the underlying information is accurate and the supporting evidence has been properly evaluated.
From Document Review to a Stronger Case Narrative
Electronic discovery does not end when responsive documents have been identified.
Attorneys must still determine what the evidence means, how events relate to one another, and which documents will be important during depositions, motion practice, and trial.
Everlaw's Storybuilder helps connect those stages by combining Fact Timelines, evidence organization, deposition preparation, and exhibit management within a shared environment.
For Hawaiʻi law firms, these features offer an opportunity to reduce administrative work while improving the organization and accessibility of important case materials.
The greatest benefit is not simply having a digital timeline or an exhibit list.
It is the ability to connect what happened, when it happened, and the evidence supporting it—all within a workflow that can evolve as the case develops.
Ultimately, effective litigation preparation depends on more than finding the right documents. It requires turning those documents into a clear, accurate, and well-supported understanding of the case.
Sources and Further Reading
Everlaw. Introduction to Storybuilder. Overview of Storybuilder's narrative-building, evidence management, and litigation preparation features.
Everlaw. Storybuilder Fact Timelines. Creating, importing, organizing, and linking Facts with supporting evidence.
Everlaw. Best Practices to Use Fact Timelines Throughout Your Case. Guidance on building case chronologies and supporting legal drafting.
Everlaw. Storybuilder Evidence Page. Organizing documents, highlights, testimony, and labels.
Everlaw. Exhibits in Depositions and Drafts. Configuring and exporting evidence for deposition and drafting workflows.
Everlaw. Deposition Preparation. Preparing outlines, managing exhibits, and collaborating during depositions.
Everlaw. Conducting a Deposition. Using exhibit references and linked evidence during depositions.
This article is intended for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Product capabilities, permissions, and availability may change. Everlaw is a trademark of its respective owner. This article is not an endorsement or sponsored publication.