Extract from Tim Thames’s article “Modern Attachments and eDiscovery: Navigating the Complexities of Linked Documents”
The saying “the early bird gets the worm” emphasizes the importance of starting something early to maximize potential outcomes. In the context of “modern attachments,” legal teams, IT professionals, and eDiscovery practitioners must quickly establish practices to manage them effectively.
Defining modern attachments
Modern attachments, also known as embedded files, are essentially hyperlinks that direct users to related electronic resources or documents. You often find these attachments in collaborative applications or chat platforms, where they act as “pointers” to referenced electronic docs. Some eDiscovery practitioners debate the term “modern attachment” and suggest using “pointer” as a more accurate description.
When you share a linked file in a conversation, it’s usually one-directional, meaning it doesn’t affect the original message. The file itself can be a website or an electronic doc that remains static or updates constantly.
