Some of the examples referenced in the oral arguments were communications about settling claims against a company internal investigations conducted by in-house counsel, such as employment-related investigations and even the common situation when an attorney might sit in on a business meeting simply to observe and listen for potential legal issues, Kiely noted. Once issued, the court's decision "could be incredibly important to employers and HR professionals," said Richard Kiely, an attorney with Holland & Hart in Denver and Jackson, Wyo. 9 in a case about the scope of attorney-client privilege when there are "dual-purpose communications"-discussions that are partly about legal matters and partly about business. These restrictions are explored in Part 2 of this series. While the attorney-client privilege safeguards the attorney-client relationship, ensures that clients can tell their attorney the things they need to know about a case, and assists the attorney to provide the best legal help possible, it is also subject to restrictions. In this way, the client may not be allowed to utilize the privilege where they include the attorney in a communication with a third-party that is not otherwise protected. Generally, the privilege only applies when the communication was intended as confidential and to further the legal services offered by the attorney. It is important that clients understand that the privilege does not apply merely because the client chooses to involve the attorney in the communication. The privilege does not generally apply to information gathered by the attorney from other sources however, another doctrine, the “work product” doctrine, may nevertheless protect such information. When applicable, the attorney-client privilege applies not only to what was said, but also to your attorney’s observations of your mental, emotional, and physical state at the time you communicate. The privilege has been held to apply to the employees of the attorney and sometimes experts retained to assist in the case. The communication must be related to obtaining or facilitating the legal services offered by the attorney. Because the privilege is for the protection of the client, the client may choose to intentionally waive the privilege, or may do so inadvertently through their actions. For example, if a client meets with his attorney and brings a friend along, then the meeting may not be protected by the privilege. While the communication can take many forms (oral, written, digital, etc.) it is protected only if it was intended to be confidential, which generally means that the communication was not intended to be disclosed to others not involved in the attorney-client relationship or the legal representation. The privilege may apply even when the client merely discusses a legal matter with an attorney when the client reasonably believes the attorney is acting as his or her attorney. Louisiana law does not require that the attorney be formally retained or payment made for the privilege to attach. An attorney-client relationship must be in place. Existence of Attorney-Client Relationship. However, not all communications between a client and attorney are privileged and certain requirements must be met for the privilege to attach. The purpose of the privilege is to allow clients to have open and honest communications with their attorney. LSA-L.C.E. Unlike most other relationships, the privilege stays in place even after the relationship is terminated. So, what is it and why is the privilege so important? In short, the attorney-client privilege is a legal doctrine that protects communications between a client and his or her attorney. This blog is one of a two-part series regarding perhaps the most important aspect of the attorney-client relationship - the attorney-client privilege. THE “ATTORNEY-CLIENT” PRIVILEGE: How, When (and Why) the Communications between You and Your Attorney are Protected – Part 1
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