Old Email Never Dies - Breathing Space Blog

We've all been there: sent off an email a bit too soon, and then realized we can't take it back.

AP business writer Christopher Rugaber, in an article, observes that “U.S. companies will need to know more about where they store e-mails, instant messages and other electronic documents generated by their employees in the event they are sued, thanks to changes in federal rules that took effect Friday,” according to legal experts.

In other words: anything you ever email at work will be stored for evermore and may one day be used against you. “The changes, approved by the Supreme Court's administrative arm in April after a five-year review, require companies and other parties involved in federal litigation to produce ‘electronically stored information’ as part of discovery, the process by which both sides share evidence before a trial.”

A word to Breathing Space enthusiasts: if you write it and send it, your message will live on. So think twice before you hit “send.”