We won't comment on Harry Stonecipher's recent ouster at Boeing, other than to note that his e-mails on the corporate system apparently were the smoking gun that led to his resignation. This case raises the question once again: How private is work e-mail? Clearly the answer is "not very."
The American Bar Association site posted this story last month for legal eagles on what electronic evidence must be preserved in a court dispute. It was written by Mark A. Willard, a commercial litigation partner at Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, LLC.
Willard warns that as soon as it can be "reasonably anticipated" that a court action will be filed, all parties must preserve potentially relevant evidence. He continues, "The term ‘evidence' includes all information, including not just hard copy documents, but all electronically stored information on any medium and in any electronic format." Failure to do so can not only hinder the court proceeding, but lead to claims of legal malpractice.
Although rich in legalese, this piece is worth reading by all managers who could one day find themselves using electronic evidence against an offending employee.