What's the current state of play regarding a company's position and their employee's email? Or more specifically a former employee's email.

Email for this former employee is still landing and is forwarded to our admin manager. Some of this email is personal. Where do we stand in terms of viewing this email and further, replying on this person's behalf, saying they no longer work here?

I have heard conflicting stories regarding this ranging from all email at a given company is company property regardless to personal email is protected by some aspect of the Human Rights Act. Is there anywhere I could find a definitve guide?
It is company policy for the admin manager to receive copies of all email for our Ops people to cover for absences and the like. I am wondering if this is actually legal.

Very confused but TIA
Mark

AFAIK, unless your employees have signed a disclaimer, you may be on fairly sticky wickets RE Human Rights if you are reading emails sent to them

I though the law was once a person has left a company there email address should be deleted totally ....so people sending get a bounce back from it
To say not found or words to that effect

cheers

The trouble with deleting the account is that some of this person's email relates to areas of work now being undertaken by someone else. The individual's leaving was somewhat rapid and so there was no chance of a handover. We are still piecing together what this person was doing which is why we can't bounce all the emails.

The best I can come up with ATM is to set up an autoresponder telling the originator the person no longer works for us.

Mark