header-logo header-logo

18 September 2019 / Georgina Squire
Issue: 7856 / Categories: Opinion , Procedure & practice , Legal services
printer mail-detail

Is client confidentiality at risk again?

Lawyers will be keenly watching the latest development in an important dispute over legal professional privilege, says Georgina Squire

Legal professional privilege (LPP) is a key component of the ability of lawyers to advise their clients. It is a fundamental right that enables clients to give full and frank disclosure of confidential information to their lawyers, so that they can receive legal advice secure in the knowledge it will not become disclosable and therefore open to scrutiny at the hands of third parties.

SFO v ENRC

LPP is a principle that, although entrenched in our legal system, has long been a topic of considerable debate. The most important decision on the principle of LPP in recent times came from the Court of Appeal last September, in Director of the Serious Fraud Office v Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation Ltd (Law Society Intervening) [2018] EWCA Civ 2006, [2018] All ER (D) 05 (Sep). This landmark appeal was a defining moment in our understanding of the scope of the LPP principle and its impact is still being keenly discussed and debated

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Hogan Lovells—Lisa Quelch

Hogan Lovells—Lisa Quelch

Partner hire strengthens global infrastructure and energy financing practice

Sherrards—Jan Kunstyr

Sherrards—Jan Kunstyr

Legal director bolsters international expertise in dispute resolution team

Muckle LLP—Stacey Brown

Muckle LLP—Stacey Brown

Corporate governance and company law specialist joins the team

NEWS

NOTICE UNDER THE TRUSTEE ACT 1925

HERBERT SMITH STAFF PENSION SCHEME (THE “SCHEME”)

NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND BENEFICIARIES UNDER SECTION 27 OF THE TRUSTEE ACT 1925
Law firm HFW is offering clients lawyers on call for dawn raids, sanctions issues and other regulatory emergencies
From gender-critical speech to notice periods and incapability dismissals, employment law continues to turn on fine distinctions. In his latest employment law brief for NLJ, Ian Smith of Norwich Law School reviews a cluster of recent decisions, led by Bailey v Stonewall, where the Court of Appeal clarified the limits of third-party liability under the Equality Act
Non-molestation orders are meant to be the frontline defence against domestic abuse, yet their enforcement often falls short. Writing in NLJ this week, Jeni Kavanagh, Jessica Mortimer and Oliver Kavanagh analyse why the criminalisation of breach has failed to deliver consistent protection
Assisted dying remains one of the most fraught fault lines in English law, where compassion and criminal liability sit uncomfortably close. Writing in NLJ this week, Julie Gowland and Barny Croft of Birketts examine how acts motivated by care—booking travel, completing paperwork, or offering emotional support—can still fall within the wide reach of the Suicide Act 1961
back-to-top-scroll