HALDEN INTELLIGENCE · haldenintel.com
DIGITAL EVIDENCE PRESERVATION — INITIAL CHECKLIST FOR COUNSEL
Draft reference aid. This is not legal advice, an instruction to collect data, or an adopted evidence SOP.

1. Identify the instructing party, authority, matter question, jurisdictions and relevant deadlines.
2. Complete conflicts and local legal/licensing review before accepting the matter.
3. Ask counsel to define any legal hold, privacy, privilege and distribution requirements.
4. Identify likely custodians and source locations without accessing accounts or devices without authorization.
5. Agree a preservation plan before altering systems. Coordinate with the appointed responder; avoid ad hoc acquisitions.
6. Record available public URLs, message identifiers and event times with time zones. Distinguish recollection from recorded evidence.
7. Preserve originals and metadata through the approved evidence platform; keep working copies separate.
8. For each authorized acquisition, record source, method, operator, UTC time, full digest where appropriate and known limitations.
9. Record every custody transfer with sender, recipient, purpose, time and integrity verification.
10. Agree access, secure transfer, retention, legal holds, review and eventual destruction in the engagement.
11. Keep evidence out of public forms, routine email, CRM, analytics and AI triage.
12. Do not send passwords, verification codes, stolen datasets or intimate imagery. Do not download intimate images for preservation through this service.

Initial intake needs only a short summary and names for conflict checking. A submitted form does not establish an engagement, privilege or admissibility.