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Government Searches of Computers

BY William A. Whitledge
July 27, 2010

You get a frantic call from in-house counsel for your corporate client: “IRS agents with search warrants are seizing our computers as we speak,” she informs you. Your mind races to identify the issues that inevitably will arise so that you can promptly, properly, and professionally advise your client what to do. Your client has no experience with criminal investigations and no inkling what will happen over the next few months. She urgently wants to know:

  • What's going on, what are they going to do?
  • Will we get our computers back?
  • How long will it take?
  • Are they going to find anything?
  • What do we do next?
  • How much will it cost?

This article addresses some of the issues arising from searches and seizures of computers and their data to provide guidance so that counsel can effectively represent the interests of their clients who are subjected to such intrusive evidence gathering by federal law enforcement authorities.

'What's Going On? What Next?'

The activity at the client's premises is the start of a structured process performed by highly skilled, trained agents who specialize in forensically preserving and extracting evidence from computers. You and your client will usually not have contact with the computer forensics examiners, as they do not have investigative responsibility for the case.

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