7 Things E-Discovery Auditors Must Do Right Now
7 Things E-Discovery Auditors Must Do Right Now
U.S. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP) require organizations to look at the ability to respond in a legally defensible manner to discovery requests. Moreover, as organizations expand globally, they need to be ready at all times to provide information that could be requested as evidence in a legal proceeding. Hence, internal or external auditors are in the best position to recommend policies and best practices that can prepare organizations to respond to a data discovery request. Therefore, the auditors must 7 Things E-Discovery Auditors Must Do Right Now:
- Determine the effectiveness of the e-Discovery communication plan
- Document the IT environment
- Regularly review backup, retention, and data destruction policies
- Review compliance with document destruction procedures, when a litigation hold is issued
- Document the steps that will be taken to respond to e-discovery requests
- During litigation, determine whether employees are preserving the integrity of relevant material
- Review existing backup controls, reports, and inventories of media stored off site
Failing to prepare for an e-discovery request can result in sanctions. In addition, organizations need to have a litigation readiness policy and plan in place to effectively deal with lawsuits. Auditors play a pivotal role in managing litigation risks and help organizations take a proactive approach to e-Discovery by recommending strategies that address key data preservation, storage, destruction, and recovery disquiets. Above all, Microsoft SharePoint 2013 and M-Files, for instance, offer e-Discovery and content management solutions.
