General Counsel Can Spur Legal Hold Success

One of the biggest challenges posed by legal holds is getting compliance by the employees who are subject to it. Because they are asked to alter their normal handling of information (including emails, documents and papers), the success of a legal hold program may depend on how well an organization implements “change management. “

Among recommended best practices: Make sure your legal hold and preservation policy is unequivocal and simple. Provide concrete examples of compliance behavior. Build a learning, or practice stage, into the legal hold program, one that has employees review how they would comply with the instructions as a part of a drill. And formulate a checklist that helps employees remember the policy and the training they received.

There are three things that general counsel, specifically, can do to lead their organizations toward legal hold program excellence. The first is to review the policy with colleagues, incorporate the recommended best practices, and test the revised policy with several non-legal employees to make sure they fully understand it.

Second, form a legal hold program partnership with the CEO or another C-level executive, and provide visible executive sponsorship for the program. Third, communicate the consequences of non-compliance.

General counsel have a unique leadership opportunity to influence the efficacy of the legal hold program for their organizations. By ensuring the use of effective change management processes and providing an aspirational goal, they can save their company from costly non-compliance.