Privileged Counseling Memos

Response # 1: We do keep a repository for just this purpose as we face the same dilemma.¹

Response # 2: One thought we had was to use our contract management system and simply set up an "Opinion" folder instead of a contract folder. However, I am not sure if that will allow us to "tag" the opinions appropriately. Anyone willing to share how they have set their opinion bank up?²

 

Response # 3: A few years ago, our department created a shared folder within our shared network drive that is accessible only by the Legal Department and called it "Knowledge Bank" and we have a sub-folder where we put outside counsel legal memos, internal trainings any of us have done, internal memos we want to share and bulletins/trainings/white papers we see from law firms that we think are worth keeping. We also tend to file conference materials in there as well. We basically created subfolders for anything we think could benefit the entire group and have discussions about what we are storing in there and how we are organizing it. It allowed us to file this type of information separately in folders and to only keep one copy.³

 

Response # 4: Creating a centralized repository of information which may be used/leveraged later is an excellent idea. Legal departments of almost any size build something like this. It can range from a simple directory structure on a shared network to a sophisticated "knowledge management system" built by a vendor for this exact type of purpose. I have also seen legal departments set up a simple Microsoft Access database with searchable fields, allowing a user to search for a previously prepared memo or document using a keyword search.

 

So, depending on the size of your department, there are many options. The first step may just be to place all of that content into one folder or directory and start building the library. As you grow, you may want to engage a third party vendor to implement a knowledge management or "KM" platform so that other attorneys and team members can quickly access previously prepared work.⁴

 

Response # 5: Although we wouldn't use this for privileged information, we use our Customer Relations Management knowledge base to house internally-written articles, explanation of laws, etc. which are available company-wide. It allows for appropriate "self-service" and cuts down on repetitive questions.⁵

 

Response # 6: Our legal department is quite small, and I am the only employment lawyer, but I have created a "topic bank" for myself on a network drive where I file advice from outside counsel, helpful articles I come across online, and advice I send to internal clients on various topics. Its been useful when a particular issue recurs.⁶