This trust is protected by what is called
attorney-client privilege.
Cooley successfully advised the liquidating trustee of the Mahalo Energy bankruptcy estate on defeating the claim of
attorney-client privilege asserted by counsel who previously jointly represented a Canadian energy company and Mahalo, its wholly-owned Delaware subsidiary.
Although the
attorney-client privilege has long been recognized under common law, there is no corresponding taxpayer-accountant privilege [other than a limited privilege for "tax advice" in some non-criminal matters under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) section 7525], Criminal and civil tax cases, however, often involve complex accounting principles that may necessitate the engagement of an accountant to aid the attorney in giving effective advice to the client.
12) His response did, however, set out to reassure the ABA that the NSA respected, and would continue to respect, the
attorney-client privilege.
Hughes that he would be reported to the state bar if he disclosed information that is protected by the
attorney-client privilege.
Summary: The oldest protection from disclosure for communications, the
attorney-client privilege, is sacrosanct in its purpose “to encourage clients to make full disclosure to their .
Polatsek, Partner, Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP will speak at the Knowledge Group's webcast entitled: “Legal Series 2014: The
Attorney-Client Privilege and Internal Investigations.
The Tax Court held that in a son-of-boss tax shelter case, two LLCs waived
attorney-client privilege for opinion letters from their attorneys by asserting defenses that turned on the LLCs' beliefs or state of mind.
The
attorney-client privilege is a bit like a souffle--much described and assumed, finicky, tricky and easily damaged, but a precious thing when properly created and maintained.
They should also be prepared at the outset of the risk assessment with the assistance of outside counsel to clearly document the establishment of a communications protocol that can effectively protect and carefully manage the
attorney-client privilege, and explain to all parties the rules for communication with respect to the risk assessment.
In essence, the court asserted that neither the
attorney-client privilege nor the work-product doctrine applied to reports prepared by outside counsel because the reports were created before the insurers made a "firm decision" to either approve or deny the claim, which involved $5 million in property damage and another $65 million in business interruption (BI) losses.
The various scenarios raise interesting factual questions for the traditional protections afforded to clients in the attorney-client relationship, particularly when it comes to assertion of the
attorney-client privilege or attorney work product protection.
attorney-client privilege - the right of a lawyer to refuse to divulge confidential information from his client