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Lieutenant Robinson,
U.S. Navy Flight Instructor, 1992
All Rights Reserved. Copyright 1999
by Ronald Robinson.
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Secrecy, Confidentiality and Attorney-Client Privilege
Virginia Rules of Professional Conduct
Rule 1.6
Confidentiality of Information.
(a) A lawyer shall not reveal information protected by the attorney-client
privilege under applicable law or other information gained in the professional
relationship that the client has requested be held inviolate or the disclosure
of which would be embarrassing or would be likely to be detrimental to the
client unless the client consents after consultation, except for disclosures
that are impliedly authorized in order to carry out the representation, and
except as stated in paragraphs (b) and (c).
(b) To the extent a lawyer reasonably believes necessary, the lawyer may
reveal:
(1) such information to comply with law or a court order;
(2) such information to establish a claim or defense on behalf of the lawyer
in a controversy between the lawyer and the client, to establish a defense to a
criminal charge or civil claim against the lawyer based upon conduct in which
the client was involved, or to respond to allegations in any proceeding
concerning the lawyer's representation of the client;
(3) such information which clearly establishes that the client has, in the
course of the representation, perpetrated upon a third party a fraud related to
the subject matter of the representation;
(4) such information reasonably necessary to protect a client's interests in
the event of the representing lawyer's death, disability, incapacity or
incompetence;
(5) such information sufficient to participate in a law office management
assistance program approved by the Virginia State Bar or other similar private
program
(6) information to an outside agency necessary for statistical, bookkeeping,
accounting, data processing, printing, or other similar office management
purposes, provided the lawyer exercises due care in the selection of the agency,
advises the agency that the information must be kept confidential and reasonably
believes that the information will be kept confidential.
(c) A lawyer shall promptly reveal:
(1) the intention of a client, as stated by the client, to commit a crime and
the information necessary to prevent the crime, but before revealing such
information, the attorney shall, where feasible, advise the client of the
possible legal consequences of the action, urge the client not to commit the
crime, and advise the client that the attorney must reveal the client's criminal
intention unless thereupon abandoned, and, if the crime involves perjury by the
client, that the attorney shall seek to withdraw as counsel;
(2) information which clearly establishes that the client has, in the course
of the representation, perpetrated a fraud related to the subject matter of the
representation upon a tribunal. Before revealing such information, however, the
lawyer shall request that the client advise the tribunal of the fraud. For the
purposes of this paragraph and paragraph (b)(3), information is clearly
established when the client acknowledges to the attorney that the client has
perpetrated a fraud; or
(3) information concerning the misconduct of another attorney to the
appropriate professional authority under Rule 8.3. When the information
necessary to report the misconduct is protected under this Rule, the attorney,
after consultation, must obtain client consent. Consultation should include full
disclosure of all reasonably foreseeable consequences of both disclosure and
non-disclosure to the client.
Attorney-Client Privilege
United States Supreme Court in
Swidler & Berlin v. United States,
524 U.S. 399
(1998).
"The attorney client privilege is one
of the oldest recognized privileges for
confidential communications. Upjohn Co.
v. United States,
449 U.S. 383, 389 (1981); Hunt v.
Blackburn,
128 U.S. 464, 470 (1888). The
privilege is intended to encourage "full
and frank communication between
attorneys and their clients and thereby
promote broader public interests in the
observance of law and the administration
of justice." Upjohn, supra, at 389."
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