Good Intentions Gone Awry

This is a headline no right-minded lawyer wants to wake up to see: “Recycled Medical Records Used As Scrap Paper At School”—especially when the source of that scrap paper was a law firm. No doubt, the person who sent the paper to the school was trying to be both environmentally conscientious and helpful to the school. According to the article, the person to blame was a paralegal at a law firm. This brings to mind a couple of points: Having policies on the books—such as protocols for destroying records or sending materials for recycling—are useless endeavors if personnel are not educated about them and they are not enforced. And every law firm needs to be mindful about crisis management public relations—and be prepared to take quick, incisive action when reporters start calling.