Legal Malpractice

Attorney Client Privilege and Legal Malpractice

By (Andrew Lavoott Bluestone)

An attorney must carefully and assiduously guard his client's confidences, secrets and communications with the attorney.  This remains true until the attorney has to defend himself.  Must this defense be to criminal charges, or to ethical charges only?  The answer is set forth in a recently decided case in the First Department.Hélie v McDermott, Will & Emery ; 2008 NY Slip Op 09289 ; Decided on November 25, 2008 ; Appellate Division, First Department
 

"Code of Professional Responsibility DR 4-101(C) (22 NYCRR 1200.19[c]) provides: "A lawyer may reveal: . . . (4) Confidences or secrets necessary . . . to defend the lawyer . . . against an accusation of wrongful conduct." We decline to make defendants' invocation of this rule dependent on plaintiff's demonstration of a prima facie case of defendants' liability (see Justice Stallman's later ruling on a related matter in this case, 18 Misc 3d 673, 683 [December 17, 2007]). "

"Even if plaintiff were not defendants' client, DR 4-101(C)(4) does not require the non-client's allegation of wrongful conduct to involve criminal or regulatory charges rather than malpractice (see Restatement [Third] of Law Governing Lawyers § 64, Comment c)."
 

Full post as published by New York Attorney Malpractice Blog on December 11, 2008 (boomark / email).