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For any employee who has attended the Legal
Department’s orientation session, you have seen
these words on one of the slides and you have heard
me say them over and over.
Why do I say them and why do I constantly harp
on documentation?
To give a real world example, we have a client who
after repeated e-mails, letters and phone calls, still
has not paid for the services we provided. Using our
collections firm, we are now going to file a complaint
against this client. Not only does the Project Manager
have a signed contract (imperative) but also e-mail
documentation showing that the client intended to
pay. This kind of evidence is critical. Unfortunately,
in the legal world, typically if it’s not in writing, it
didn’t happen. Showing e-mails from the client
promising to pay will be very helpful in front of a
judge.
This is not to say that picking up the phone and calling
your client is not important. It is and is absolutely
necessary to maintaining good client relations. But
if a critical decision is made, something is approved
over the phone, a change is made to your scope of work
or the schedule of the next deliverable, you MUST
follow that conversation up with a confirming e-mail
which you then save to the project file.
Having proper documentation when something
is questioned or when things go wrong is always
important in bolstering BL’s position.
Legal Brief
By the Legal Dept.
Practical advice based on BL’s policies and procedures as well as things
that might be helpful in your life outside BL.