Technological e-Discovery Advancements In 2004
Electronic discovery ' the collection, review and production of e-mail and other electronically stored documents ' has dramatically changed the way lawyers handle document discovery. Law firms and their corporate clients, saddled with volumes of electronically stored information, have demanded the best technological solutions for collecting, retrieving and managing mountains of electronic evidence. As technology continues to evolve, e-discovery solutions continue to progress. This article summarizes 2004's most notable technology developments in the e-discovery arena.
How Safe Is The Store?
Given the now-common nature of e-commerce, new challenges face traditional firms and e-only businesses regarding adequate protection of the companies' computer systems, data and Web sites. These challenges are somewhat similar to those faced by a traditional retail business, but extend beyond those boundaries because of the Internet. For an e-business, a comprehensive disaster-recovery plan, including proper protection of computer systems and data, is critical to the success of the enterprise, and essential for daily operation.
What's a Virtual Business Worth?
Traditional business-valuation tools don't work well online. As a result, problems arise if the owner wants to price an online business for sale. Book value rarely approximates real value without hard assets ' which many online firms don't carry. A value based on earnings or revenue can work ' if the firm has enough of a track record, through good years and bad, to make it reliable. <br>But a brick-and-mortar solution, the earnout, can solve this high-tech dilemma. In an earnout, a business-seller receives contingent payments based only on a business's profits in the hands of the buyer.
Bringing Spammers To Justice
When initiating a private action against a spammer, the first issue the plaintiff must grapple with is jurisdiction. If a recipient of spam is located in the same state as the spam sender, for instance, ordinary private-action rules apply. <br>But the problem there is that many would-be defendants reside outside the state where the spam recipient resides, and long-arm jurisdiction must be employed.
e-Commerce Revenue Up Again, Gov't Reports
The U.S. Census Bureau reported Nov. 19 that estimated third-quarter e-commerce sales accounted for $17.6 billion of economic activity ' 1.9% of the total estimated $916.5 billion.
PCAOB Proves It Has Teeth
While some companies are unfamiliar with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), PCAOB has recently been making its presence known. PCAOB is a private-sector nonprofit corporation created by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX), whose stated purpose is to "oversee the audit of public companies that are subject to the securities laws, and related matters, in order to protect the interests of investors ... " Section 101(a). Although some questioned whether PCAOB would ultimately have any real-world impact on accounting firms and the public issuers they audit, PCAOB has proven that it has the authority, ability and appetite to shape the heightened environment in which companies now operate following passage of SOX and its focus on restoring investor confidence in companies' financial reporting.
