Report finds that 58 percent of companies in Europe and the U.S. do not believe they could access documents accurately and quickly if required by legal authorities

LONDON (15th June 2012) - Epiq Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:EPIQ), a leading provider of managed technology services for the global legal profession, has released a new research report focused upon the eDisclosure readiness of European and U.S. companies. To read the full report, visit Epiq’s web site: http://www.epiqsystems.com/regulator.aspx

The report, entitled “When the Regulator Calls,” is based on a survey of more than 2,000 corporations across sectors including aerospace, banking and manufacturing in the U.K., France, Germany and the U.S.*

A majority (58 percent) of respondents stated that in their sector, most companies would not be able to rapidly and accurately access key information and documents likely to be demanded by a regulatory authority in the course of an investigation. In France, 69 percent of the companies surveyed believed that companies in their sector would not have the tools in place to enable them to access important information at short notice. In contrast, German companies were the most confident - 47 percent said that most companies would not be able to access information quickly and correctly. In the U.K., 59 percent said this was the case, similar to that of the U.S. where 56 percent said that companies would struggle to retrieve the information required.

Companies across 17 sectors in the U.K., France, Germany and the U.S. were surveyed. Of these, food and drink (51 percent), extraction industries (52 percent) and chemical and pharmaceuticals (54 percent) expressed the most confidence in their ability to rapidly and accurately access key information. At the other end of the scale, companies in the media and publishing (74 percent), high-tech and information technology (69 percent) and telecommunications and internet service providers (68 percent) sectors expressed the least confidence in their eDisclosure capabilities.

“Companies must establish a clear map of which information management systems and communication tools are being used within the business and by whom. They need to understand the means by which they can organise that information to enable efficient search and review,” said Greg Wildisen, International Managing Director, Epiq Systems. “When it comes to responding to an investigative request, the more prepared a company is, the more efficient the eDisclosure process will be and the easier it will be to manage costs.”

*MindMetre Research, on behalf of Epiq Systems, surveyed more than 2,000 corporations in the U.K., France, Germany and the U.S. between September and November 2011. Respondents were senior managers (functional heads or deputy heads) with responsibility for compliance, corporate risk, or both. Company size demographics were: 51-250 employees, 26.8 percent; 251-1,000 employees, 20.5 percent; 1,001-2,500 employees, 9.4 percent; 2,501+ employees, 43.3 percent.