P2P

36 P E E R T O P E E R : I L T A ' S Q U A R T E R L Y M A G A Z I N E | F A L L 2 0 2 0 If not, what new controls need to be put in place to ensure those access restrictions are enforced in the collaboration platform? Is there integration with the document management system, or are documents stored natively in the platform? Is there version control? Consideration should first be given to native tools that can assist with answering many of these questions. If native tools are absent or insufficient, third party tools may be available to meet the new governance controls required. 6. Leverage existing information management protocols. Ultimately, one of the key benefits of collaboration platforms is to share information amongst a group of users via a variety of methods and channels. As mentioned above, a good rule of thumb to governing the platform is to think of it in terms of other similar repositories – the DMS, SharePoint, and even email – and how users are expected to manage that information throughout its lifecycle. Reviewing existing data management policies, or using tools like the Law Firm Information Governance Process Wheel1 to ensure IG-related processes are addressed within the collaboration platform can be tremendously beneficial, including: • Retention and disposition – does the firm's existing retention process and schedule apply to the platform? If so, is the schedule incorporated into the platform's settings? If not, what should be added/modified? Who will ensure the data is completely deleted? What functionality does the platform provide to ensure data is completely deleted? Does the vendor or do other third parties need to be involved in the deletion of the data? • Matter Mobility – how does relevant data get transferred to new counsel? Is there an established understanding of what will not be transferred? How does the matter-specific site get decommissioned, and/or how are external parties removed from the platform? In the event of an attorney-departure, is it understood through the separation process that the platform data must undergo the same process as other matter data being transferred to new counsel? • Litigation holds – how can the specific platform data be preserved in the event there is a legal hold? • Outside Counsel Guidelines – is there a vetting process to ensure that the platform is used in alignment with client expectations (or where applicable, being restricted from client teams when the client does not permit its use?) Likely, the firm has already considered and documented a process and plan to test out the platform for end-user functionality. Where practical, it's highly advantageous to have the IG team test out related governance processes and workflows to ensure they are realistic and working as expected. 7. Have a change management plan ready – based on real experience. One of the best ways to find out how users will use software is to let them use it out of the box and conduct focus groups to discuss what works well and what they find useful. Unfortunately, there is no easy way to do this with modern collaboration platforms as the available feature sets may extend far beyond those that a firm

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