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Does Attorney-Client Privilege Protect Client e-Mail?

By Michael J. Hutter
April 24, 2011

Clients are increasingly communicating with their attorneys by e-mail. They find this type of communication to be an easy and fast means to provide their attorneys with information important to the protection of their legal interests and obtain advice relative thereto. While clients surely believe that their e-mail communications involving legal matters are protected by the attorney-client privilege equal to a mailed letter, e-mail communications pose confidentiality and waiver risks on the part of clients. Attorneys must advise their clients of these risks, and advise their clients on how to avoid them. Several recent decisions are instructive in that regard.

Statutory Assurance of Privilege

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