Melina O Efstathiou

Melina is a Managing Director within Grant Thornton UK’s Legal Data Intelligence (LDI) practice, part of Forensic & Investigation Services. She trained as a solicitor specialising in financial crime and serious fraud before moving into eDiscovery in 2011, and now leads the LDI Disputes and Investigations practice across the UK, EMEA and APAC. Her work sits at the intersection of forensic investigation, legal technology and AI governance – helping organisations move beyond simply mapping their data (Early Data Assessment) towards using it to drive earlier, evidence-based legal strategy (Early Data Strategy), so that generative AI and other analytics tools produce insight that is both reliable and defensible in disputes, investigations and regulatory matters. 

Melina’s day-to-day spans live disputes, regulatory investigations and AI governance advisory, often running in parallel across UK, EMEA and APAC engagements. What sets her apart is the ability to bridge legal, forensic and technology disciplines – she developed the RAC™ (Responsibility, Accountability, Control) framework for AI governance and is recognised externally as a thought leader in this space, including through her contribution to the Sedona Conference and her role as ACEDS Global Ambassador. As a named LDI Architect, she co-authored the 2026 industry guide “From Assessment to Intelligence: Operationalizing Early Data Strategy (EDS) in the Age of Generative AI”, published by Legal Data Intelligence alongside architects from peer firms. The guide’s central argument – that organisations cannot reliably unlock generative AI’s value in legal work until their underlying data is properly governed – runs through Melina’s own client work: she helps organisations build the governed data, clear taxonomy, consistent intake and defined access controls that make AI-assisted review and analysis both effective and defensible, rather than bolting AI onto an ungoverned data estate. She works most closely with clients across financial services, technology and the public sector on disputes, fraud investigations and data-driven compliance matters, and is currently applying AI-assisted review technology, including Relativity’s aiR for Review, to complex cross-border investigations. 

Outside work, Melina teaches AI governance at King’s College London and is a regular speaker and contributor to international forums on data, law and technology. She enjoys travelling and reading and is based in London.