As a Compliance Officer, you can put a single email or file on legal hold by applying a Legal Hold tag to it, straight from the reading pane.

Apply a legal hold tag

1. Go to the Search section and run a search.
2. Click the email or file to open it in the reading pane.
3. In the reading pane toolbar, click Apply Tag. If it doesn't fit in the toolbar, you'll find it under More.

4. In the Apply a Tag window, click the Tag Name field. Your tags are listed by type, with Legal Hold tags under Legal Hold. Start typing to filter the list.
5. Select the tag and click Tag Item.

You'll see a confirmation message: Tag successfully applied.

Create a new legal hold tag while applying it

If the tag doesn't exist yet, you can create it from the same window:

1. Type the new tag name in the Tag Name field (up to 30 characters).
2. Click Create name tag at the bottom of the list.
3. Set Tag Category to Legal Hold Tag and, optionally, pick a Tag Color.
4. Click Create & Tag 1 item.

You'll see a confirmation message: New tag successfully created and applied.

The tag now shows on the item, both in the results list and in the reading pane. Legal Hold tags are marked with a scales icon in front of the tag name.

Remove a legal hold tag

1. Open the email or file in the reading pane.
2. Click the X next to the tag, under the subject.

The tag is removed straight away. You'll see a confirmation message: Tag successfully removed.

Please note that the X is shown only if your role has permission to remove legal hold tags. Anyone with that permission can remove a Legal Hold tag, not just the person who created it.