iPhone tips track changes metadata in Word documents

iPhone tips 
A big part of my law practice is collaborating with other attorneys, whether they be co-counsel for the same client or counsel for co-defendants. Accordingly, one feature that I use heavily in Microsoft Word on my computer is the track changes feature to suggest improvements to documents. As you know, edits show up in redline in Word on your computer and look something like this:
 he iPhone generally does a good job of reading Word files.  If one is attached to an e-mail, you can just tap the attachment to read it.  But be warned that if the document has the track changes feature enabled to show edits, you don't see the edits on the iPhone.  You instead just see what the text would look like with the redline edits accepted.  Thus, if I e-mail a Word document containing the text in the above example to my iPhone and tap the attachment, here is what I see:
Note that if I hold down on the attachment and view it in another app, I might be able to see the redline edits.  For example, if I open the Word file in Documents to Go, I correctly see the redline edits:
  
Documents to Go cannot create redline edits on the iPhone or iPad — indeed, there is currently no app that does so, and I hope that this changes soon — but it is nice to be able to see the redline edits when someone asks you to review them.
If you try to view the file in Office², you see all of the text (both the deleted text and the new text) without any indication of what is old and what is new.  Rather confusing:
  





I wasn't able to try this redline file with the Quickoffice app.  A few days ago, that app was upgraded to version 4.0.0, and unfortunately on my iPhone it now crashes every time I try to start the app.  I've been in communication with Quickoffice about this bug and they are investigating it.  If you use Quickoffice and you have not yet upgraded, consider waiting to upgrade until this bug is fixed.
[UPDATE 5/24/11:  A new version of Quickoffice is now out.  Unfortunately, I confirmed that Quickoffice Pro handles track changes the same way as Office², i.e., not well at all.]
Accordingly, there are two things that you should be aware of.  First, if you want to view redline edits, purchase and use Documents to Go on your iPhone or iPad.
Second — and this is the really important one — be aware that when you are viewing a Word file using the iPhone or iPad's built-in viewer, you are not seeing redline edits even if they are there.  Thus, if you forward that file to opposing counsel, you may not realize that you are showing the opposing counsel not just the modified version of the document but also the original version of the document with the modifications noted in redline.  Depending upon the edits, this could be disastrous for you and your client.
Under the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, there is nothing unethical about your opposing counsel reviewing those redline edits that you sent him, although if he knows or reasonably should know that the transmission of this metadata was inadvertent he does have a duty to notify you.  And apparently in some states, such as Maryland, there is not even a duty to disclose.  Take a look at this helpful page from the ABA for a comparison of the ethical duties of attorneys in various jurisdictions.
There are companies such as 3BView that offer a service to remove metadata from files on your iPhone.  That can be useful if you know that the metadata is there, but my main concern is for lawyers who view and forward Word files on their iPhone or iPad without realizing that the track changes features was in use. Of all of the metadata that exists in a Word file such as author and date of creation, it is redline edits that have the biggest potential to cause headaches when you share them without knowing it.
So my advice to you is to be aware of this possibility, and take a look at a file with Documents to Go if you want to check for the existence of tracked changes in redline.
Click here for Documents to Go ($9.99): 
Click here for Documents to Go Premium ($16.99):