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uk Work & employment crises legal hold notice at work • litigation hold request • preservation notice email • preserve emails and files • stop deleting work emails • document retention hold • email archive hold • preserve teams messages • preserve slack chats • preserve whatsapp work chats • preserve shared drive files • preserve onedrive documents • preserve personal device work data • preserve deleted items folder • do not alter documents • do not overwrite files • do not forward hold notice • workplace dispute preserve records • workplace investigation preserve records • preserve calendar invites • preserve meeting notes

What to do if…
you receive a request at work to preserve emails and documents for a legal hold

Short answer

Stop deleting or editing anything that could relate to the matter, and follow the hold instructions exactly. Ask the named contact (legal/HR/IT/records) to put a technical hold in place so preservation doesn’t rely on manual “remembering”.

Do not do these things

  • Do not delete, “tidy up”, rename to hide, or edit anything related to the matter (including drafts, calendar items, chats, and attachments).
  • Do not move items into personal email, USB sticks, or personal cloud storage “for safekeeping”.
  • Do not selectively preserve only what you think is “important” (or only what helps your side).
  • Do not forward the hold notice widely or discuss the matter in group chats; keep it to the named contacts.
  • Do not create new “recap” documents or commentary unless legal/HR specifically asks for it.
  • Do not assume IT backups mean you can ignore the hold (routine retention can still delete content unless a hold is applied).

What to do now

  1. Stop any deletion/clean-up immediately.
    Stop deleting emails, emptying Deleted Items/Junk, clearing chat history, or deleting old versions. Also pause any shredding/clearing of paper notes related to the topic.

  2. Freeze your own auto-delete behaviours.
    If you control any of these, pause/disable them now (or stop using them until IT advises): mailbox cleanup rules, auto-archive rules, chat “auto-delete” settings, scripts that purge folders, or routines that wipe downloads/temp folders.

  3. Read the hold notice once, then extract the essentials.
    In a private note (not a shared doc), record:

    • matter name/reference
    • date range
    • topics/people/projects
    • systems in scope (email, Teams/Slack, SharePoint/OneDrive, local drive, phones, paper)
    • the named contact for questions

  4. Acknowledge receipt promptly (as requested) and ask two clarifying questions if needed.
    Keep it short: confirm you will comply, then ask:

    • what systems are in scope for you, and
    • whether IT/records will apply a technical hold to your mailbox/accounts/devices.

  5. Flag anything at risk of routine deletion to the named contact/IT.
    Examples: mailbox quota pressure, chat retention policies, planned device replacement, offboarding steps, shared folders you manage with deletion schedules, or short-retention project tools.

  6. List where relevant material could realistically be sitting (without collecting/exporting it).
    Make a quick inventory: Outlook folders, Teams chats, shared drives, SharePoint sites, OneDrive, local laptop folders, notes apps used for work, work phone SMS/WhatsApp (if used), paper notebooks. This helps legal/IT preserve—it is not a prompt to start copying everything yourself.

  7. If personal devices/accounts were used for any work on this topic, disclose it—don’t move it.
    Say it plainly (e.g., “Some project messages were on my personal phone in WhatsApp”). Do not self-export or “backup” that content unless the hold contact (often legal/records/DPO/IT) tells you the approved method.

  8. Keep communications disciplined from now on.
    If you need to ask a question, use the designated contact and normal work channels. Avoid informal speculation or jokes in writing—assume anything you write could later be reviewed.

What can wait

  • You do not need to decide what is “relevant” in a legal sense right now—preserve first, sort later.
  • You do not need to produce documents to anyone unless you are specifically instructed through the official process.
  • You do not need to write a detailed narrative of events unless you are asked by the appropriate internal contact.
  • You do not need to contact clients, regulators, or external parties yourself unless your employer instructs you to.

Important reassurance

Receiving a legal hold can feel personal or accusatory, but it is often routine whenever a dispute, claim, inquiry, or investigation is possible. The safest approach is boring and consistent: don’t delete, don’t edit, don’t move data off-system, and use the named contact so preservation is coordinated.

Scope note

This is first-steps-only guidance to prevent accidental deletion or confusion. Your employer’s legal/HR/IT/records teams may have specific instructions for your role and systems, and you should follow those even if they differ from general guidance.

Important note

This guide is general information, not legal advice. If you’re uncertain about scope, personal-device involvement, or retention/data-protection conflicts, ask the named contact (and your organisation’s records/DPO function if applicable) before doing anything that changes where data lives or how it’s stored.

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