Long Live the King of E-Bankruptcy!!!

Tom Waits has got to be one of the coolest entertainers/performers alive today. Any one as reclusive as he seems to have become must be uber-cool. His official website consists only of a single black and white picture, and a banner with his name. No news, no discography, no announcements, no touring, all unusual given that Waits' newest album "Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards" has more than 50 tracks, at a retail price of at least $55.

While pouring over endless CLE's, articles, books, web sites, pod casts, and other incantations to research an article I recently penned for the Bankruptcy Section of the State Bar of Texas, I realized that precious little has been written for bankruptcy lawyers regarding the proper care and handling of ESI. Mere days after my article was published (and owing to the fact that the ABI ignores my continued pleas for a free subscription to their journal), I discovered the undisputed King of Bankruptcy ESI, the Godfather of E-Bankruptcy, a prophet and visionary so far ahead of the rest of us that even Popular Science hasn't fantasized some revolutionary new way for the rest of us to catch up.

The hardest working man in all of E-Bankruptcy is none other than Jack Seward (who, rumor has it, can be contacted at JackSeward@msn.com ). Jack Seward, a consultant and digital forensic accounting technologist, has also been a long time contributor and editor to ABI as well as several other related publications throughout the industry. Seward is also a co-chair of the ABI's Commercial Fraud Task Force.

Nearly as reclusive as Tom Waits, but clearly far more versatile and talented, Jack Seward may be the coolest thing to happen in the practice of bankruptcy since the introduction of personal computing.

Seward figured out years ago what many bankruptcy attorneys and many self-styled EDD vendors and experts still have not... EDD/ESI issues in bankruptcy are not just for discovery anymore. Jack Seward's published works ought to be required reading for any attorney making an appearance in any bankruptcy court in the country.

To that end, here are citations (and links where possible) to the Seward articles (or articles listing Seward as a Contributing Editor) I have located so far, and will update this post as conditions warrant.

Good to the Last Byte, March/April 2004 Commercial Law Bulletin - Commercial Law League

Beyond the Quill, September 2006 American Bankruptcy Institute Journal

You Need to Know This: Bankruptcy and Attorney-Client in the Electronic Age, Michael D Fielding, December 2006 American Bankruptcy Institute Journal

Straight & Narrow - Empowerment of Creditor Rights: Section 727 Denial of Discharge and the BAPCPA of 2005, June 2005 American Bankruptcy Institute Journal

Straight & Narrow - ETHICS: Protecting Yourself Against E-illiteracy: Avoid Being Duped, September 2004 American Bankruptcy Institute Journal

On-line article featuring Seward/ Now You See It, Security Management Online, Dec 2003 (This one is my favorite so far. The article briefly discusses how Seward discovered that data was being hidden as, or within, mp3 files).

Judge Learned Hand, Please Help Them to Help Themselves, September 2006 American Bankruptcy Institute Journal

Seward, Jack, "The Debtor's Digital Autopsy Or Where's the Money!" . NABTalk, Journal of the National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees, Vol. 19, No. 2, Summer 2003

FEATURE ARTICLE: E-sleuthing and the Art of Electonic Data Retrieval: Part I - Jack Seward and Daniel A. Austin, February 2004 American Bankruptcy Institute Journal

FEATURE: E-sleuthing and the Art of Electronic Data Retrieval: Uncovering Hidden Assets in the Digital Age: Part II - Jack Seward and Daniel A. Austin, March 2004 American Bankruptcy Institute Journal

FEATURE: E-sleuthing and the Art of Electronic Data Retrieval - Uncovering Hidden Assets in the Digital Age: Part III - Jack Seward and Daniel A. Austin, April 2004 American Bankruptcy Institute Journal

You Need Forensic Technology! Or, If the Debtor is Hiding E-Data, Don't You Want to Know About It?, The Bankruptcy Strategist - Law Journal Newsletters Nov. 2003.

Digital Autopsy on Debtor's PixieDust, Seward



Jack Seward, Column, Back to the Future: FRCP and Electronic Discovery in Bankruptcy, 24-1 AM. BANKR. INST. J. 24 (2005).



Jack Seward, Column, Always Look Both Ways--Especially When Using Digital/Electronic Communications, 24-6 AM. BANKR. INST. J. 40 (2005).



FEATURE: Zero Tolerance for Commercial Bankruptcy Fraud: Bankruptcy Metrics Dictate that Forewarned Is Forearmed (citation: ABI Journal, Vol. XXIV, No. 10, p. 1, December/January 2006)

Check back here to learn how to become a founding member of the Jack Seward fan club!