what confidentiality do you have with a lawyer

The Duty of Confidentiality for Criminal Lawyers

• Inviting the Presence of Third Parties. Defendants should probably limit the presence of third parties during...
• Disclosing Statements to Third Parties. If a defendant later discloses the contents of a conversation with their...
• Conversations in Jails. A conversation in a jail or prison is confidential if the client and...

Full Answer

Do lawyers have to keep confidentiality?

While your attorney must keep your conversations confidential, others are not subject to these limits to lawyer confidentiality, so if you meet your lawyer in public or talk to him or her on a cellphone while in public, anyone who overhears you could share that information with police or prosecutors.

Do I still have attorney client confidentiality?

The general traditional common-law rule is that the attorney-client privilege is forever. The protection covers communications between a client and his or her attorney in connection with the provision of legal advice.

What is attorney attorney confidentiality?

• An explanation of the purpose of the agreement
• A definition of the information to be kept confidential
• A promise by one or both parties to never disclose the information, or to not disclose the information until a specified time limit or condition has been met
• Whether there are limits on the information that is deemed confidential

When can a lawyer breach confidentiality?

When can a lawyer breach confidentiality UK? Confidentiality and conflict This provides that if there is a conflict, or a significant risk of a conflict, between two or more current clients, then the firm must not act for all or both of those clients unless the matter falls within the scope of the limited exceptions set out at Outcomes O (3.6 ...

Why is confidentiality between a lawyer and his or her client so important?

Confidentiality between a client and his lawyer has several necessary purposes. First, it promotes candid conversation between two. Second, it is essential in the attorney's preparation of the client's representation.

What is the confidentiality rule?

The confidentiality rule, for example, applies not only to matters communicated in confidence by the client but also to all information relating to the representation, whatever its source. A lawyer may not disclose such information except as authorized or required by the Rules of Professional Conduct or other law.

When can a lawyer disclose confidential information?

Section 126 of the Act prohibits an attorney from disclosing attorney-client communications, without the express consent of the client. Therefore, the client may release the attorney from his or her obligation to maintain secrecy. However, in the absence of express consent, the attorney has a duty to maintain secrecy.

What client information should be kept confidential?

Information that should be kept confidential are any information that could damage a company's reputation or ability to do business if it becomes public.Confidential Business Information.Confidential Employee Information.Handling Digital Data.Employee Education.

Losing Your Right to Confidentiality: Speaking in A Public Place

Suppose you discuss your case with your attorney in a restaurant, loud enough for other diners to overhear the conversation. Can they testify to wh...

Losing Your Right to Confidentiality: Jailhouse Conversations Via Phone

Jailhouse conversations between defendants and their attorneys are considered confidential, as long as the discussion takes place in a private area...

Losing Your Right to Confidentiality: Inviting Others to Be Present

For perfectly understandable reasons, defendants sometimes want their parents, spouses, or friends to be present when they consult with their lawye...

Losing Your Right to Confidentiality: Sharing The Conversation With Others Later

Blabbermouth defendants waive (give up) the confidentiality of lawyer-client communications when they disclose those statements to someone else (ot...

Your lawyer must keep your confidences, with rare exceptions

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Losing Your Right to Confidentiality: Speaking in a Public Place

Suppose you discuss your case with your attorney in a restaurant, loud enough for other diners to overhear the conversation. Can they testify to what you said? Yes. Lawyer-client communications are confidential only if they are made in a context where it would be reasonable to expect that they would remain confidential. ( Katz v. U.S., 389 U.S.

Losing Your Right to Confidentiality: Jailhouse Conversations on the Phone

Jailhouse conversations between defendants and their attorneys are considered confidential, as long as the discussion takes place in a private area of the jail and the attorney and defendant do not speak so loudly that jailers or other inmates can overhear what is said.

Losing Your Right to Confidentiality: Inviting Others to Be Present

For perfectly understandable reasons, defendants sometimes want their parents, spouses, or friends to be present when they consult with their lawyers. Does that mean that the conversation won't be considered confidential?

Losing Your Right to Confidentiality: Sharing the Conversation With Others Later

Blabbermouth defendants waive (give up) the confidentiality of lawyer-client communications when they disclose those statements to someone else (other than a spouse, because a separate privilege exists for spousal communications; most states also recognize a priest-penitent privilege).

Get Help

If you want to know what is and isn't confidential given the law in your jurisdiction, make sure to consult a criminal defense lawyer. An experienced lawyer can advise you of the relevant law and guide you through the criminal justice system.

Inviting the Presence of Third Parties

Defendants should probably limit the presence of third parties during conversations with their attorney unless the presence of the third party is necessary.

Disclosing Statements to Third Parties

If a defendant later discloses the contents of a conversation with their attorney to a third party, the confidentiality of that conversation will be waived. There are exceptions to this rule for spouses and sometimes religious figures, such as priests.

Conversations in Jails

A conversation in a jail or prison is confidential if the client and the attorney use a private area in the facility to talk and do not talk loudly enough for others to hear them. Phone calls can pose more complicated questions.

Most, but not necessarily all, of what you tell your lawyer is privileged

The attorney-client privilege is a rule that preserves the confidentiality of communications between lawyers and clients. Under that rule, attorneys may not divulge their clients' secrets, nor may others force them to.

Comparison: The Duty of Confidentiality

The attorney-client privilege is, strictly speaking, a rule of evidence. It prevents lawyers from testifying about, and from being forced to testify about, their clients' statements. Independent of that privilege, lawyers also owe their clients a duty of confidentiality.

Expecting Confidentiality

Lawyer-client communications are covered by the attorney-client privilege only if the circumstances lend themselves to confidentiality. For example, clients who speak to their lawyers about pending lawsuits in private, with no one else present, can reasonably expect secrecy.

Actual Clients Only?

Preliminary communications between a potential client and a lawyer are normally subject to the attorney-client privilege. That means that lawyers can't disclose what prospective clients reveal in confidence even if the lawyers never ends up representing them. ( In re Auclair, 961 F.2d 65 (5th Cir.

Past and Future Misbehavior

Discussions of previous acts are generally subject to the attorney-client privilege. If, for example, if a client tells his lawyer that he robbed a bank or lied about assets during a divorce, the lawyer probably can't disclose the information.

Talk to a Lawyer

The attorney-client privilege differs somewhat from state to state, and between state and federal court. When speaking to an attorney about a legal matter, make sure to go over the scope of the attorney-client privilege and the duty of confidentiality.