In our previous article, we reported on the ever-growing problem of spam (unsolicited, commercial e-mail messages) and the efforts being made on the technological, legislative and litigation fronts to reduce the spam problem.

Every attorney dreams of uncovering one critical piece of evidence, commonly called the "smoking gun," that would both (1) persuade the jury and (2) disable the opposing counsel's case. In the last decade, the hope of locating the "smoking gun" has fallen heavily on (1) the apparent promise of discoverable electronic data and (2) the realization that this type of information exists in abundance.

Consumer protection laws regulating debt collection practices are a complex minefield of potential liability for creditors and other debt collectors. Large damage awards, provisions for recovery of attorneys’ fees, and increased awareness and interest in consumer protection in general have fueled an explosion in class action lawsuits, even for seemingly minor violations of such legislation.