Law conference will address relationship of eDiscovery and social media

Corporate Counsel magazine's upcoming Social Media: Risks and Rewards conference will touch on the latest threats and increasing legal perils associated with the rapid growth and evolution of social media, including how it pertains to eDiscovery.

Among this year's topics, eDiscovery is identified as an emerging issue when it comes to social media. Specifically, "the lawyer's new nightmare: eDiscovery and social media" will be a featured discussion section.

"Social media has blurred the lines completely between work and private life. Among other things, it's made legal departments totally re-evaluate what is important in terms of discovery in the employment sphere," said Corporate Counsel Editor-in-Chief Anthony Paonita.

As social networking continues to grow in popularity, many attorneys are left questioning whether information contained in such sites as Facebook and Twitter are covered under discovery requests.

It is important for companies and law firms alike to keep abreast of eDiscovery regulations that may change with new laws and countless emerging technologies. Oklahoma's new eDiscovery law, passed earlier this year, takes effect November 1 and covers laptops, desktops, printers, copiers, scanners, fax machines, telephones and smartphones and other mobile devices, according to an expert.