Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
is. to. simply. give. a. general. layperson's. idea. of. what. these.
might. mean. to. you. and. your. organization,. but. not. a. legal.
education.
These. rules. often. address. the. important. understanding.
of.privilege.and.the.work.product.doctrine..We.spend.much.
more. time. on. these. issues. when. we. discuss. recovery. and.
acquisition.of.electronic.evidence.in.Chapter.5.
1.2.2.1. FRE.502
FRE.502.speciically.addresses.the.attorney-client.privilege.
and. gives. protection. from. inadvertent. disclosure,. similar. to.
what.is.discussed.in.FRCP.Rule.26.(b)(5)..If.you.notice.your.
mistake.quickly.enough.you.can.use.this.rule.of.evidence.to.
ask.the.courts.to.disallow.the.use.of.electronic.information.
that. should. not. have. been. disclosed. to. the. opposing. par-
ties.because.it.was.work.product.or.privileged..Rule.502(b).
allows. you. to. request. the. return. of. inadvertently. produced.
privileged.or.work.product.evidence.if.you.took.reasonable.
steps.to.prevent.the.error.and.noticed.it.relatively.quickly.and.
responded.promptly.
Again,.this.is.a.place.where.preparation.and.good.proce-
dures.make.all.the.difference..If.you.or.your.organization.have.
a.good.records.management.process.in.place.that.everyone.
knows.about.and.follows.carefully,.it.will.be.much.easier.to.
winnow.out.the.relevant.electronic.data.for.any.type.of.litiga-
tion.or.even.for.an.audit.or.other.records.request.
By. creating. and. sustaining. good. records. retention. prac-
tices.you.will.be.less.likely.to.inadvertently.disclose.evidence.
that. should. be. treated. as. privileged.. You. will. also. need. to.
have.and.practice.good.and.thorough.discovery.procedures..
We.spend.time.outlining.those.procedures.and.the.tools.and.
skills.necessary.later.in.the.topic..For.now,.sufice.it.to.under-
stand.that,.as.always,.the.more.you.can.put.in.place.up.front.
and. the. more. you. practice. and. reine. those. processes,. the.
better.you.will.fare.when.it.comes.time.for.litigation.or.other.
records.production.needs.
