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Legal Hold

A legal hold freezes a document so it cannot be archived or deleted, regardless of any retention policy. Use it whenever a document may be needed for litigation, an audit, or a regulatory investigation.

Legal holds are fully enforced today. Any document on hold is blocked from all archival and deletion actions. Holds can be placed and removed via the Retention API and through Organization → Retention → Legal Holds.

Coming Soon

Screenshot: locker-legal-hold-badge, a document card showing the Legal Hold status badge in the document list

Coming Soon

Screenshot: locker-legal-holds-list, the Organization → Retention → Legal Holds page showing all documents currently on hold with their reason, date placed, and acting user

What Is Enforced Today​

BehaviorStatus
Documents on hold cannot be archived by any retention policyActive
Documents on hold cannot be deleted, manually or by policyActive
Hold status is visible in document metadata and the document listActive
Every hold event (placed, removed) is permanently logged in the Audit LogActive
Placing a hold via the Retention APIAvailable
Removing a hold via the Retention APIAvailable
Managing holds at Organization → Retention → Legal HoldsAvailable
Placing/removing a hold from the document detail pageComing soon

Place a hold immediately when any of the following applies:

  • Litigation or threatened litigation, the document may become relevant evidence
  • Regulatory investigation or audit, an agency or auditor may request the document
  • Internal investigation, HR, compliance, or legal teams are reviewing relevant records
  • Discovery hold notice, counsel has issued a hold covering certain records
  • GDPR erasure request that conflicts with a statutory obligation, the document must be retained despite a deletion request (see Legal Hold and GDPR)

Do not wait for formal legal proceedings to begin. Place the hold as soon as there is a reasonable anticipation the document may be relevant.

Via Organization → Retention​

  1. Go to Organization → Retention → Legal Holds.
  2. Click Place Hold and search for the document by name or ID.
  3. Enter a reason, required for audit purposes (e.g., "Acme litigation hold, case #2025-0042").
  4. Click Confirm.

The document status changes to Legal Hold immediately. The event is recorded in the Audit Log with the timestamp, reason, and acting user.

Coming Soon

Screenshot: locker-place-legal-hold, the Place Hold dialog in Organization → Retention → Legal Holds showing the document search and reason fields

Via the Retention API​

For bulk holds or integration with your legal team's systems, use the Retention API. Send a hold request to the document record with a required reason field. The reason is stored in the Audit Log and should be specific enough to identify the underlying matter.

See API Integration for authentication and request details.

caution

Legal holds are serious compliance operations. Ensure the person placing the hold has the authority to do so. The acting user and reason are permanently logged and cannot be altered.

Remove a hold when the matter that triggered it has been resolved, litigation concluded, investigation closed, audit completed.

Via Organization → Retention​

  1. Go to Organization → Retention → Legal Holds.
  2. Find the document by name, ID, or matter.
  3. Click Remove Hold.
  4. Enter a reason for removal (e.g., "Matter settled, hold released 2025-11-14").
  5. Click Confirm.

Once removed, the document returns to Active status. If its retention period has already expired, Locker will process it at the next scheduled retention run. If you need to preserve the document further, set a document-level retention override before removing the hold, see Retention Policies.

Via the Retention API​

Send a release request to the hold record via the Retention API. The document returns to Active status immediately.

Checking Hold Status​

  • In the UI, The document's status badge shows Legal Hold in the document list and detail view.
  • In Audit Logs, Go to Organization → Audit Logs and filter by action Hold Placed or Hold Removed to see the full hold history for any document.
  • Via the API, Retrieve the document record and inspect the status field and holds array, which lists all active holds with their reason, date, and acting user.
Coming Soon

Screenshot: locker-legal-hold-document-detail, the document detail page showing the Legal Hold status badge and the active hold's reason and date in the metadata panel

A verified GDPR erasure request can override retention policies and trigger early deletion, except when a legal hold is active:

ScenarioResult
Erasure request received, no active hold, no statutory obligationErasure proceeds, document is deleted
Erasure request received, active legal holdErasure is blocked, hold takes precedence
Erasure request received, statutory obligation applies (e.g., tax law)Erasure is blocked, statutory obligation recorded
Erasure request received, hold removed before processingErasure proceeds if no other blocker

When a request is blocked by a legal hold, Locker records the legal basis and notifies the requestor that processing is restricted. The decision is permanently recorded in the Audit Log.

See Compliance for the full GDPR and CCPA workflow.

Use this checklist whenever you need to place or manage a hold:

  • Identify all documents relevant to the matter (search by vendor, contract type, date range, or parties)
  • Place a hold on each document via Organization → Retention → Legal Holds or via API
  • Record the matter name and case reference number in the hold reason
  • Notify document owners that their documents are on hold
  • Confirm hold status is visible on each document (status badge shows Legal Hold)
  • Export the hold log from Audit Logs as a record of the preservation step
  • When the matter resolves, remove each hold with a documented reason
  • Verify documents re-enter the correct lifecycle and check their retention period status