What is defensible deletion? And why does it matter for eDiscovery? Elizabeth Guthrie of Nextpoint discusses that in this post!

As Elizabeth defines it in (wait for it!) What is defensible deletion — and why it matters for ediscovery (available here), defensible deletion is the practice of permanently destroying data in accordance with a documented, consistently applied retention policy, in a manner that can withstand legal, regulatory, or judicial scrutiny if challenged. It’s not enough to simply delete the data. To be defensible, the organization can show that it followed a principled, good-faith process rather than destroying information selectively or opportunistically. 

In the context of eDiscovery, defensible deletion is less about the act of deletion itself and more about the program behind it. Organizations that maintain clear retention schedules, apply them consistently, and suspend them appropriately when litigation arises are far better positioned than those that either delete haphazardly or, conversely, keep everything indefinitely.

Expect defensible deletion to become more prominent in the EDRM 2.0 model that is expected to be released soon for public comment!

So, why isn’t “save everything” a strategy? What makes deletion “defensible”? And what is its downstream effect on eDiscovery? Find out here, it’s just one click! No defense needed to click! 😉

So, what do you think? Does your organization have a robust defensible deletion program? Please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

Image created using DALL-E 3, using the term “robot lawyer wearing a suit holding a magnet over a computer hard drive”.

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Disclaimer: The views represented herein are exclusively the views of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views held by my employer, my partners or my clients. eDiscovery Today is made available solely for educational purposes to provide general information about general eDiscovery principles and not to provide specific legal advice applicable to any particular circumstance. eDiscovery Today should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a lawyer you have retained and who has agreed to represent you.