Email is so convenient, so quick, so informal, surely it’s just like having a quiet word? Wrong, says law firm Masons. In a legal dispute, anything you say, even internal emails, must be shown to the other party.

And the thing about emails is… you can’t shred them.

Richard Laudy, a partner with Masons, warned delegates at the firm’s annual legal briefing that the rules of disclosure mean you have to turn over all documents – whether they support or damage to your case. And a document is classed as anything on which information is stored. So, you know that note you fired off to your contracts manager, the one where you described what really went wrong with the roof…?

“Re-write every email before you send it,” advises Laudy. “Take a deep breath and perhaps even walk round the block before you press send.” He said all firms should have a protocol that covers internal e-mails.

Source

Construction Manager