Attorney Client Privilege
Attorney Client Privilege
1
1/12/2023
–applies only to the content of the communication, not the fact of the
investigation by hiring internal or external communication or to the underlying facts if they can be established
from sources other than disclosure of the confidential
counsel to do it. communication
• Can company retain privilege if it wants Btw attorney & person who is/about to become a client
cooperation credit For the purpose of obtaining legal advice from attorney,
Is made in confidence
(client reasonably expected that the communication would not be
divulged outside attorney-client relationship)
Hasn’t been waived/lost
2
1/12/2023
3
1/12/2023
4
1/12/2023
Work Product
Attorney W/P Privilege
PROVIDES A QUALIFIED IMMUNITY FOR
1.Encompasses material “obtained or MATERIALS PREPARED IN ANTICIPATION OF
prepared by an adversary’s
counsel” in the course of his legal
LITIATION BY A PARTY, AN ATTORNEY OR
work OTHER REPRESENTATIVE OF A PARTY.
BASIC 2.Provided legal work was done in IDEA IS NEED TO LET ATTRNY PREPARING
PRINCIPLES
anticipation of litigation FOR TRIAL ASSEMBLE MATERIAL THAT
3.Not automatically waived by WOULD BE OUTSIDE A-C PRIV: LIKE WITNESS
disclosure to a third-party (i.e., STATEMENTS
non-adversary).
MUST BE PREPARIG FOR LITIGATION, OR
4.Both attorney and client can invoke IMMINENT LITIGATION
privilege 109
5
1/12/2023
Waiver
WAIVE PRIV IF DISCLOSE UNDER CIRCUM Attorney Client:
WHERE SUBSTANTIALLY INCREASE
POSSIBILITY THAT AN OPPOSING PARTY Who counts as the client when a lawyer
COULD OBTAIN THE INFORMATOIN. hired by a firm conducts an
OK TO DISCLOSE TO PARTIES SHARING A
6
1/12/2023
UPJOHN “WARNINGS”
Upjohn 1981
In January 1976, Upjohn’s independent accountants
• Employees made statements to counsel, at the direction of conducted an audit of one of the petitioner’s foreign
the company’s management, for counsel to provide subsidiaries and discovered that the subsidiary made
company legal advice payments to or for the benefit of foreign government
• Communications to counsel concerned matters within the officials in order to secure government business.
scope of their corporate duties
The accountants told Mr. Thomas, Vice-President,
• Employees were aware that counsel was questioning them to
Secretary, and General Counsel, who consulted with
provide legal advice to company
outside counsel and the company’s Chairman;
• Company indicated communications were highly
confidential decided that the company would conduct an internal
investigation of what were termed “questionable
• Warning: Counsel represents company, not employees, to
provide company legal advice and company may decide to 115
payments” using outside lawyers
disclose all statements it receives to the govt. , information Firm’s lawyers prepared a letter for the Chairman’s
should be kept confidential by employee. signature to “all foreign general and area managers”
(appears to be to subsidiaries’ personnel)
What did letter do to try to retain priv Did the company tell others about payments?
noted recent disclosures of “possibly illegal” payments to foreign
7
1/12/2023
8
1/12/2023
9
1/12/2023
What did S Ct object to about this test? Other reasons to go beyond CG?
What is wrong with this test?
Advice Providing role
CG test “overlooks the fact that the privilege exists “The attorney’s advice will also frequently be more significant
to protect not only the giving of professional to noncontrol group members than to those who officially
advice to those who can act on it but also the sanction the advice, and the control group test makes it more
difficult to convey full and frank legal advice to the employees
giving of information to the lawyer to enable him who will put into effect the client corporation’s policy.”
to give sound and informed advice”
Compliance
Can’t lawyers get info need from senior mgmnt It “threatens to limit the valuable efforts of corporate
Respon superior allows firm to be liable for crimes by lower counsel to ensure compliance with the law.”
level employees—outside control group
Uncertainty
With many crimes (FCPA) ordinary employees—not control
the standard is so vague—that people cannot anticipate what will be
group—were involved and they have the information. covered. If the purpose of the privilege is to be served, the attorney
and client must be able to predict with some degree of certainty
h h i l di i ill b d
10
1/12/2023
UPJOHN
133
11
1/12/2023
12
1/12/2023
S Ct policy
• Privilege depends on whether ordinary work • What is the rationale behind the work product
product or opinion work product doctrine?
• Opinion Work Product – Essential to proper functioning of the adversary system:
– While standard rule is “substantial need” and “without undue it is important that a lawyer work with a certain degree
hardship” that doesn’t apply to workprduct based on oral of privacy and if there is no protection, much of what is
statement.
now put in writing would go unwritten—inefficiency,
– A higher standard than substantial need and inability to obtain
unfairness and sharp practices would inevitably develop
the equivalent without undue hardship is applied to this category
of materials (opinion work product) in the giving of legal advice and the preparation of cases
– Not specify the standard for trial; the effect on legal profession would be
demoralizing; the interests of the client and justice
• Statements by witnesses?
would be poorly served
– oral statements by witnesses, whether presently in the form of
attorney’s mental impressions or memoranda, will rarely be
ordered produced.Would reveal attorney’s mental processes
13
1/12/2023
14
1/12/2023
Why Does CO Lose: 2nd prong How can firms avoid this?
• Entered into agreement with M. before threat of • Consider retainer agreement with a law
litigation; Scope of agreement same as Debevoise firm for cyber incidents
– But isn’t it safe to say that litigation is anticipated
– Have law firm enter into a retainer agreement
whenever there is a breach. Ct said yes anticipated
litigation but primary purpose not anticipated litigation
with firm like FireEye
• SOW did not direct it to work with outside • Specify in SOW that law firm oversees.
counsel Make sure investigate issues material to
• CO treated it as a business expense and it both response and to litigation
appears it would need the same report even • Consider two reports—one for the business
without litigation side and one for the legal side
• CO broad post-production disclosures within the
business
• Waiver
15
1/12/2023
Exceptions to Privilege
Waiver
Waive if not assert privilege
Waive if disclose previously privileged matters.
Client is generally not permitted to make selective waive
(disclose to one person—gov’t—and not to others) or limited
Waiver waiver (disclose one part of the conversation while protecting
other parts).
This is generally true even if disclose to govt
Though gov’t has signed agreements saying that the disclosure is
selective and priv continues to hold. Some divisions in the courts on
whether those are valid.
16
1/12/2023
DOJ Filip Memo (Aug. 28, 2008) Disclosure of facts of the crime
• Evaluating Cooperation
– “Eligibility for cooperation credit is not predicated upon the waiver of • What result if the law firm just disclosed the
attorney-client privilege or work product protection. . . . [T]he analysis
parallels that for a non-corporate defendant, where cooperation typically facts of the crime and the witnesses who
requires disclosure of relevant factual knowledge and not of discussions
between an individual and his attorneys.” would be worth interviewing
• Facts Gathered Through Internal Investigations – Under DOJ policy this does not effect a waiver.
– “Often, the corporation gathers facts through an internal investigation.
Exactly how and by whom the facts are gathered is for the corporation to – This would appear not to effect one under this
decide. Many corporations choose to collect information about potential
misconduct through lawyers, a process that may confer attorney-client
case too.
privilege or attorney work product protection on at least some of the
information collected. Other corporations may choose a method of fact-
– Notice that in discussing the power point the
gathering that does not have that effect . . . .Whichever process the court notes that the law firm did not reference
corporation selects, the government’s key measure of cooperation must
remain the same as it does for an individual: has the party timely disclosed specific interviewees—who said what.
the relevant facts about the putative misconduct? That is the operative
question in assigning cooperation credit for the disclosure of
information—not whether the corporation discloses attorney-client or work
product materials.”
17
1/12/2023
• Cognizant cannot redact the memos it’s • Govt and Counsel Engage in an Elaborate Dance to get
the facts while
required to disclose on the grounds that a
– (For the Govt) Not asking the company to waive
portion is privileged privilege when it needs the facts to build its case
– Disclosure to gov’t was intentional – (For the Company) Preserving the privilege when it
– Disclosed and undisclosed are same subject wants full cooperation credit.
matter
– Ought in fairness to be considered together • Practice Pointers:
– Summarize facts v. what witnesses said.
• Order applied waiver to all
– Avoid attributing specific facts to particular witnesses.
documents/communications that were – Identify witnesses for govt. to interview.
reviewed and formed any part of presentation
– Can identify documents that matter
to govt
18