A record retention policy is a formal protocol for the saving and destruction of company records. It should include documents required to be kept by law or kept for business reasons, and it should cover both paper and electronic records, according to attorney Ronald J. Cooke, a partner in the Los Angeles office of Nossaman LLP.
A record is defined as information maintained in the normal course of business, Cooke says, regardless of the media on which it is stored. You should define what is included and what is excluded (e.g., drafts, notes, etc. or just the final product). You should also define various types of records to be kept.
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Crafting and enforcing a record retention policy is a collaborative effort. All departments are involved (including legal, IT, records management, and HR), and it is the ultimate responsibility of senior management.
How can you create an effective record retention policy? First complete an assessment of company operations, says Cooke. Determine:
- What records are created?
- How, where, and by whom are they created?
- How, where, and from whom are records received?
- All applicable legal requirements governing contents, form, and retention periods.
- How are originals to be preserved? For example: when are “wet signature” originals required or desirable? Should electronic records be preserved in normal or native format, and not just as printouts of electronic files?
With these answers, you can then develop a schedule for retention. The policy in defining records and retention should be media neutral. The policy should include routine implementation and compliance audits, and should be designed in a fashion that is neutral to litigation.
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Electronic data requires special considerations to insure its stability, which means that IT will have a greater role in electronic data retention and should have backup processes for disaster recovery.
Tomorrow, we’ll look at additional record retention considerations. We’ll also explain a new resource that can help you keep track of some of your trickiest recordkeeping obligations.
Yesterday , we looked at some of the elements of a strong record retention policy. Today, a few more
Yesterday , we looked at some of the elements of a strong record retention policy. Today, a few more