In today’s digital age many corporations face a veritable catch-22: they need to erase mounds of old data they store at high cost and risk, but doing so may open them up to legal sanctions should the information be needed in litigation.

With the 2015 amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP) and their emphasis on proportionality , however, companies are finally finding some wiggle room to do so. But legally erasing old data is still no walk in the park.