The invention concerns an electronic mail management (EMM) system for handling electronic mail in a multiple user environment, in which the user's incoming electronic mail is sent and received, said system includes a mail distribution network including a server through which. electronic mail items of the users are exchanged, said system comprising: detecting means for monitoring the flow of in- and outbound electronic mails for a specified set of users, and intercepting the in- and outbound emails; journalizing means for creating a notification record of a set of e-mail information data (metadata) for each intercepted electronic mail; an e-mail manager database (EMM DB) for storing at least said notification record and each electronic mail; and means for establishing a journal of e-mails by defining a search request query and submitting said search request to a search engine for selecting a userdefined series of information data from the notification records in the EMM database.