The set of factors determining retention typically includes (but may not be limited to): Legal/regulatory mandates (minimum retention periods prescribed by law) The longest requirement for records included in that record series. The legal retention requirement for some of the documents in a records series may be shorter than the requirement for the record series in which it resides
In a recent blog post, we looked at several important legal considerations when storing records in the cloud . These included the question of whether electronic formats would be legally accepted as records, and also the critical issue of retaining legal control over your records in a cloud scenario
BACKROUND One of the greatest challenges faced by firms when implementing retention rules is effectively managing records that have retention periods predicated upon “event based triggers.”
You’ll need to determine the enterprise retention periods for the Temporary and Work in Progress states. The retention periods for records are determined by the retention schedule. Streamline the legal/preservation hold process . Set a clear policy with procedures that define the who, what, when and how the legal hold process is to take place
Fewer retention category choices (due to bigger, fewer retention buckets) in a retention schedule can lead to more consistent records management compliance as long as the risks of potentially longer retention periods are taken into account
This is obvious – but the archive should be able to retain documents for defined periods of time, taking into account legal, regulatory, fiscal, operational, and historical requirements
However, every records manager worth his or her salt will inevitably ask the million-dollar question: does cloud record storage jibe with our legal obligations for records management?
” Clearly there are barriers to systematic disposition, and I think the people-process-technology model is helpful in classifying the barriers: People – In-house lawyers are leery of destroying records, even when retention periods have been satisfied. Process – Applying the physical model for disposition (approvals by audit, legal, and/or tax before destruction) to electronic records doesn’t seem practical but not sure what to do in lieu of it
Reconciling your company’s legal citations and best practices on the draft records retention schedule is a ten darn-it [1] job
Review each line with the appropriate Legal expert and determine the appropriate Retention Period for each
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