How to Construct a Modern Framework for Digital-First Legal Holds

Mitratech’s Lauren Burnside writes that organizations have traditionally issued digital-first legal holds as a one-time notice instructing a small group of custodians to preserve specific documents. But in today’s environment—defined by ephemeral messaging, decentralized cloud storage, and constant digital communication—this static approach exposes organizations to significant litigation and regulatory risk.

Legal hold compliance refers to an organization’s ability to reliably identify, preserve, track, and ultimately release data that is relevant to litigation or regulations. Courts increasingly expect legal holds to be reasonable, defensible, and supported by repeatable processes.

A defensible legal hold strategy starts with visibility. Legal teams must understand where meaningful work occurs, including “shadow” systems that fall outside traditional IT inventories. Rather than engaging in exhaustive monitoring, organizations that apply a consistent, well-documented approach to identifying and scoping data sources are far better positioned to withstand failure-to-preserve claims and regulatory scrutiny. 

Equally critical is reducing reliance on custodians as the primary safeguard. Placing compliance in the hands of busy employees introduces avoidable risk, while legal hold software automation enables in-place holds within an auditable and defensible preservation process. 

While relevant information must be preserved if litigation or investigation is anticipated, privacy and data protection regulations limit the length of time personal data can be retained. Indefinite retention creates cost, risk, and exposure. Mature software programs are thus needed to manage the full lifecycle of a legal hold, including disciplined release to avoid both over-retention and spoliation.

Documentation and communication are essential defenses. Automated, concurrent audit trails demonstrate how preservation occurred, while clear, human-centered notices improve understanding and compliance. Together, these elements signal a shift from reactive compliance to a resilient, business-aligned legal hold framework built for the digital age.