State debates e-mail retention legality

E-mail retention is becoming a hot topic for the Illinois state government, after the legal system publicised a new system in response to access to critical e-mail evidence during a controversial criminal case, reports Messaging Architects.

According to a recent report from the State Journal-Register, the local records commission and the state archivist are working to extend a new e-mail retention system to ensure compliance for every state department.

After e-mail retention issues disrupted a 2007 criminal case involving an accused sex offender in Illinois, the state's legal system adopted new technology and compliance standards to mandate long-term e-mail retention.

UPC Ireland has won against four of the largest companies in the music business after the High Court in Dublin ruled that laws designed to identify Internet users that had illegally downloaded music files were unenforceable, says Broadband TV News.

The cable company had stood firm after an out of court settlement reached last year between the record labels, EMI, Sony, Warner and Universal, and the telco Eircom.

In his ruling, Justice Peter Charleton said that while solutions to the problem of Internet piracy were available, the rule of law was yet to catch up with the technology.

With the idea of keeping the judiciary up to date with modern technology, the Indian Supreme Court has started providing laptops to all judges of the three-tier judiciary, states the Himalayan.

According to the scheme, the apex court will give laptops to all 115 judges of the 16 appellate courts this year.

“It is a bid to make judges familiar with new technology as it can help them provide justice promptly,” says Hemanta Rawal, assistant spokesperson of the Supreme Court.