What is the difference between a legal hold and a litigation hold?
Asked by: Frederique Feeney | Last update: October 8, 2025Score: 4.4/5 (31 votes)
A legal hold, also known as a litigation hold, is the process by which organizations preserve potentially relevant information when litigation is pending or reasonably anticipated. By issuing a legal hold, organizations notify custodians about their duty not to delete ESI or physical documents relevant to a case.
What is a legal or litigation hold?
Introduction. A litigation hold is a written directive advising custodians of certain documents and electronically-stored information (“ESI”) to preserve potentially relevant evidence in anticipation of future litigation.
What is a legal holding?
A legal hold, also known as a litigation hold, is the process organizations use to inform relevant parties (custodians) that they must preserve their data for anticipated litigation.
What is another word for legal hold?
Continue Reading About litigation hold (legal hold, preservation order or hold order) A trial relying on computer evidence should start with a trial of the computer evidence.
What is a legal hold called?
Schedule demo. Legal hold, also known as litigation hold or preservation order, plays a pivotal role in eDiscovery.
What is Litigation Hold and How to turn ON Litigation Hold in Office 365
How long can a legal hold last?
Legal holds may last weeks, months, or even years.
What can trigger a legal hold?
A triggering event, such as a lawsuit or regulatory investigation, signals the need for a legal hold. When an organization becomes aware of a triggering event, it must act quickly to initiate the legal hold process and notify relevant custodians of their preservation obligations.
What is your responsibility when you receive a legal hold?
The legal hold notice serves as a legally binding directive, and custodians who receive it are obligated to comply with its instructions. Failure to adhere to a legal hold notice can result in legal consequences, including sanctions, and adverse inferences in court proceedings.
Can you delete documents during a legal hold?
Does Legal Hold Prevent Files From Being Deleted? A Legal Hold policy protects against deleting files from the trash. However, it does not prevent files from being moved to the trash. Users can move files to the trash even if they are under a legal hold policy.
Which is considered a triggering event for a legal hold?
A triggering event may include, but is not limited to, correspondence from an individual or attorney threatening litigation, filing a claim, requests for information re: hiring/firing, Page 2 Orange County Sheriff-Coroner Department Orange County SD Policy Manual Legal Hold Policy Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2019/12/13, All ...
Is a holding legally binding?
A court's holding and its rationale (taken together, the ratio decidendi) are binding because they were necessary for the court's resolution of the case.
What is the scope of the legal hold?
The scope of the legal hold is determined on a case-by-case basis, taking into consideration various types of ESI and other records. The scope might include emails, system log data and other potential data sources. The key question in this stage is: What is reasonable to preserve?
What is the legal term for hold?
To possess; to occupy; to be in possession and administration of; as to holdoffice.
When can a litigation hold be released?
Send written notice when litigation hold is released. Removal of a hold generally occurs when the statute of limitations related to the claim has expired or when the lawsuit and all appeals have ended.
What happens if a case goes to litigation?
The attorneys will present arguments, evidence, and witness statements. The judge will then rule on objections and motions and the judge and/or jury will provide a verdict. Litigation is complicated and extensive preparation is required.
What is a legal hold in a sentence?
Organizations must ensure proper legal policies, procedures, and processes are being implemented to meet legal hold and eDiscovery requirements.
How does a legal hold work?
What Is a Legal Hold? A legal hold (also known as a litigation hold) is a notification sent from an organization's legal team to employees instructing them not to delete electronically stored information (ESI) or discard paper documents that may be relevant to a new or imminent legal case.
What should you do when you are notified of a legal hold?
Recipients of Legal Hold Notices must confirm receipt of the Notice and compliance, as requested by counsel. Recipients should also notify counsel if additional distribution is necessary to other employees or parties.
Is it illegal to withhold legal documents from someone?
§ 152(9) Subsection (9) of Section 152 prohibits the fraudulent withholding of any recorded information--i.e., books, documents, records, and papers--related to the property or the financial affairs of the debtor.
How long can you be on legal hold?
I'd be happy to help answer your question. Unfortunately, your command can keep you on legal hold until the investigation is complete and the command makes a decision on whether or not to take you to a court-martial. I would expect for this to take at least a few months, though possibly longer.
What are 3 legal responsibilities?
When individuals agree to serve as board members, they take on fiduciary responsibilities that statutory and common law require. Specifically, they have to comply with three fiduciary duties: care, obedience and loyalty.
What triggers litigation hold?
Reasonable Anticipation of Litigation: When parties have a reasonable expectation of being involved in a legal dispute, such as a potential lawsuit, arbitration, or regulatory investigation, the tides of a legal hold begin to rise.
What is a silent legal hold?
Silent holds empower administrators to place data on legal hold without advising custodians that an investigation is underway.
What is a reasonable cause hold?
Reasonable cause to believe a check is uncollectible requires the existence of facts that would cause a well-grounded belief in the mind of a reasonable person. Such belief shall not be based on the fact that the check is of a particular class or is deposited by a particular class of persons.
What happens if you fail to comply with a legal hold notice?
Failure to comply with litigation hold orders can result in significant penalties, including large monetary fines, reimbursement of the opponent's litigation costs, or adverse inferences against the party failing to meet discovery obligations.