Legal & Ethical Due Diligence for Providing Access to Born-Digital Collections

Kate Dundon, University of California Santa Cruz; Jessika Drmacich, Williams College

In February 2020, the DLF Born-Digital Access Working Group (BDAWG) identified a need for practical guidance for practitioners in considering legal and ethical issues when providing access to digital collections. The committee identified ten areas of research, including attorney-client privilege, copyright, culturally sensitive materials, donor agreements, Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), institutionally mandated confidentiality, personally identifiable information, privacy, and terms of service. The committee completed the first draft of this document in June 2021 and is now seeking feedback from the born-digital community. Following a brief presentation on the project, we will break into small groups, each focusing on one research area. Participants will be asked for their feedback, which will be incorporated into the document prior to final release.