Running Head: INCREASING THE LIKELIHOOD Increasing the Likelihood of Admissible Electronic Evidence: Digital Log Handling Excellence and a Forensically Aware Corporate Culture

Collecting and storing potential electronic evidence (commonly in the form of digital logs) that meets the requisite legal rigor, in a rapidly changing technological environment, is a persistent challenge in today’s business environment. The corporate culture of most organizations lacks the background to fully comprehend the requisite evidentiary requirements of the legal system. Consequently, potential electronic evidence is inherently difficult to collect and store an appropriate and admissible manner. This discourse will present a summary of the primary evidentiary concerns for electronic evidence collected in digital logs for large private-sector corporations. To establish electronic evidence admissibility in legal proceedings, digital logs must be collected pursuant to the Federal Rules of Evidence (as applied to electronic evidence) and the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986. An essential objective for this research paper will be to focus attention on the importance for private-sector awareness as to the value of a forensically ready organizational culture. Hopefully, this awareness will demonstrate how the appropriate collection and storage of its digital logs can influence legal proceedings pursuant to these two statues. Increasing the Likelihood