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Applying The Revised Aba Model Rules In The Age Of The Internet: The Problem Of Metadata, Ronald D. Rotunda
Applying The Revised Aba Model Rules In The Age Of The Internet: The Problem Of Metadata, Ronald D. Rotunda
Ronald D. Rotunda
When lawyers receive a document — whether hard copy or an electronic document — that they know the adversary sent them inadvertently (for example, a fax or email mistakenly sent to an adversary lawyer instead of to co-counsel), the black letter rule in Rule 4.4 requires the lawyer to notify the other side. However, this Rule does not require the receiving lawyer to return the document unread. Whether the receiving lawyer can use that document depends, in essence, on the law of evidence. If the court decides that the document lost its privileged status (perhaps because the sending lawyer acted …