E-Discovery In The Cloud: Who Can Get Your Data?

In its simplest form, the cloud is the remote storage of data that is accessed via the Internet. A growing number of lawyers, and their clients, are turning to it instead of company-owned data centers to store electronically stored information (ESI). In response to this trend, many lawyers have asked (1) whether placing ESI in the cloud could inadvertently waive the attorney-client privilege and (2) whether the government or a civil litigant could obtain ESI directly from the cloud service provider.