Preservation Letter

# Preservation Letter

Drafts a formal preservation notice establishing the opposing party's duty to preserve evidence, tailored to the matter's custodians, data sources, and time period.

## Prerequisites

Gather before drafting:

1. **Case identification** — parties, caption/docket (if filed), or anticipated claims
2. **Key facts** — relevant dates, transactions, events establishing the dispute
3. **Known custodians** — individuals likely possessing relevant information
4. **Data sources** — IT systems, communication platforms, cloud services, retention policies
5. **Temporal scope** — preservation start date through present

## Quick Start

Format as formal business correspondence: letterhead, date, recipient block (name/title/org/address), re-line with matter description.

## Required Sections

| Section | Content |
|---|---|
| **Opening Notice** | Counsel, client, dispute nature. If filed: caption, court, docket. If pre-suit: state client reasonably anticipates litigation. Cite FRCP 37(e) or state equivalent. |
| **Matter Description** | Factual context sufficient for recipient to identify custodians and sources. Do not disclose litigation strategy. |
| **Preservation Scope** | Categorized instructions per scope table below |
| **Implementation Instructions** | Litigation hold procedures per checklist below |
| **Spoliation Consequences** | Legal consequences of non-compliance |
| **Response Requirements** | Written acknowledgment deadline (5–10 business days), hold confirmation, contact info |
| **Closing** | Formal closing, signature block with bar admissions |

## Preservation Scope Categories

Include only categories applicable to the dispute:

| Category | Examples |
|---|---|
| **Paper** | Contracts, memoranda, notes, financials, invoices, drafts |
| **Electronic comms** | Email, texts, IMs, social media, voicemails — all platforms/devices including personal if used for business |
| **ESI** | Documents, spreadsheets, databases, presentations, calendars — native format with metadata intact |
| **Cloud/storage** | Cloud services, shared drives, backups, archived data, servers, mobile devices |
| **Physical** | Products, equipment, machinery, vehicles (if applicable) |
| **Audio/visual** | Recordings, photos, videos, surveillance footage |

Key emphasis: metadata must be preserved intact; no format conversions; personal devices/accounts included if used for business.

## Litigation Hold Checklist

Instruct recipient to:

- [ ] Suspend all routine destruction, auto-deletion, email purging, and retention schedules immediately
- [ ] Issue written hold notice to all custodians by name and position
- [ ] Direct IT to disable auto-deletion, preserve backups, protect systems from data-destructive maintenance
- [ ] Preserve all newly created documents relating to the matter
- [ ] Maintain records of all preservation efforts
- [ ] Continue hold until matter resolved or written release provided

## Spoliation Consequences

Address with appropriate firmness:

- FRCP 37(e) sanctions: monetary penalties through adverse inference instructions
- Dismissal or default judgment in egregious cases
- Contempt findings
- Sanctions apply even for negligent destruction; intentional destruction risks punitive sanctions and criminal liability
- Routine business practices are not a defense once litigation is reasonably anticipated

## Pitfalls and Checks

- **Scope calibration** — omit inapplicable categories (e.g., no physical evidence in a pure contract dispute)
- **No strategy disclosure** — provide enough context for compliance, nothing more
- **Ongoing duty** — emphasize preservation is continuous, not one-time
- **Questions ≠ delay** — state that scope questions do not excuse or delay compliance
- **Temporal scope** — define explicitly with start and end dates
- **Jurisdiction** — default to federal (FRCP 37(e)); adapt to state rules if specified
- **Tone** — professional courtesy with unmistakable firmness
- **Citations** — verify all case law and statutory references; mark uncertain ones with [VERIFY]