Certified E-Discovery Specialist (CEDS)

It is a multiple-choice exam consisting of 145 four-item questions, meaning each question offers four answer choices. It is delivered at ACEDS-Kryterion Testing Centers, of which ACEDS lists more than 1,100 worldwide, and is available year-round rather than in fixed testing windows.

ACEDS lists the Standard Package at $1,495 and the Complete Package at $1,995. Full-time employees of local, state, or federal government agencies and non-profit organizations qualify for reduced pricing: $1,249 for the Standard Package and $1,595 for the Complete Package. A separate exam-only option is listed at $995 for one year.

Both include the on-demand prep course, exam prep manual, practice questions, expert Q&A sessions, a two-year certification, one-year ACEDS membership, one year of exam eligibility and study material access, a digital badge, mentorship access, the eDiscovery Executive Certificate Program, and a four-hour lecture series. The Complete Package adds a second exam attempt.

Certification is valid for two years upon passing the exam with an approved application, and ACEDS maintains a recertification path. Retake terms are not fully spelled out on the pages reviewed: the Complete Package includes two exam attempts, while the Standard Package includes one, so candidates should confirm retake rules with ACEDS directly.

ACEDS does not state a mandatory prerequisite or prescribed study sequence. The exam blueprint spans the whole e-discovery lifecycle, so a practical order is to work through the Exam Manual and practice questions first, then use the on-demand prep course and expert Q&A sessions to close gaps in project planning, international discovery, and ethics.

ACEDS states that its US and Canada study materials and exams cover the entire e-discovery lifecycle, including e-discovery project planning, international discovery, and ethics in e-discovery. Candidates should expect questions spanning the full process rather than a narrow technical focus on any single tool or vendor platform.

ACEDS says the exam is constructed with the help of 40 experts under the strict auspices of a psychometric firm and a worldwide survey, and that this produces a neutral, legally defensible professional certification examination and program. It describes the test as built objectively by e-discovery experts and audited by a global job-task survey.

The most common failure modes are studying only one slice of the lifecycle, such as technology, while neglecting project planning, international discovery, and ethics, and relying on memory of vendor workflows instead of the exam manual. Work the practice questions, review every miss against the manual, and attend a Q&A session before scheduling.

ACEDS provides a digital badge through Credly's Acclaim platform that can be displayed in email signatures, digital resumes, and on social media such as LinkedIn. The package also includes a two-year CEDS certification, one-year ACEDS membership, and access to the ACEDS mentorship program.

Yes. ACEDS offers a CEDS Canada Certification and an International CEDS track, and has announced the launch of an International CEDS beta exam. Study materials and exams specifically designed for the US and Canada are available, so candidates outside those regions should confirm which version applies to them.