Daily Diary

Resigned to your fate

Posted 9/10/2006 by legalweekblogs.com SU

The dangers of stray emails are well known in the legal sphere, with past indiscretions ranging from last year’s ‘ketchup-gate’ at Baker & McKenzie (see story) to the infamous Norton Rose ‘yours was yum’ email (see this salacious follow-up) that circled the globe in a matter of minutes.

One partner at a top 10 City firm recently discovered the perils of hitting 'send to everyone in my entire address book' instead of 'delete' for himself. Having become the latest partner to resign from his 'embattled' firm – but before he had submitted his resignation letter – the partner was asked to comment on some work for another department head.

However, in replying he mistakenly attached his resignation letter rather than his comments on the work – a move interpreted by the unimpressed department head as a sign of the partner’s post-resignation lack of commitment. He promptly forwarded the email to the senior partner, who burst into the departing partner’s office to accuse him of improper use of email and a poor attitude.

However, the partner claims that was the only time the senior partner ever spoke to him – so perhaps the occasional stray email is not such a bad thing after all.