Overview
On October 12, 2022, Law360 published an article by Will Drake and Nicholas Silverman titled “DOJ Interview With Trump Attorney Spotlights Privilege Exception.” The article discusses Christina Bobb’s voluntary interview with the US Department of Justice (DOJ) through the lens of the self-defense exception of attorney-client privilege. Attorney-client privilege applies to communications made between persons for the purpose of obtaining or providing legal assistance to a client. The self-defense exception permits attorneys to disclose privileged communications to defend themselves from potential criminal, civil or administrative liability relating to a representation.
In the piece the authors write, “No court has yet opined regarding what precautions should be taken by disclosing attorneys to minimize harm to their clients' expectations of confidentiality. The lack of guidance regarding how to protect a disclosing attorney's clients results in novel questions in need of creative solutions… [C]ounsel must balance the best interests of their client with their own interests.”
