E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings on ESI Control, Third-Party Data and Preservation Risks

This article, “E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings on ESI Control,” published by Law360, is part of a quarterly column analyzing recent e-discovery developments from the past three months. This installment examines federal decisions addressing when parties have possession, custody or control of electronically stored information, including cases involving third-party data sources such as personal devices, employer systems and cloud storage. It highlights how courts apply both the legal right and practical ability standards and reviews decisions imposing sanctions for failure to preserve ESI. Readers will gain practical guidance on assessing control, coordinating with third parties and implementing proactive preservation strategies to mitigate discovery risks.