Casebriefs » Evidence

Case Overviews

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 21:50:18 +0000

Clark v. State (1953)

Facts: Clark murdered his wife on the day she secured their divorce. He then placed a phone call to his attorney in which he confessed to the murder. The attorney advised him to dispose of the gun.

Issue: Does the attorney-client privilege advice from the attorney that aids the client in evading the law or furthering the criminal activity?

Rule: When an attorney knowingly advises a client on how to evade the law, the attorney is acting outside of any professional capacity, becoming an accomplice. The crime/fraud exception to the attorney-client privilege renders such communications unprotected.

Privileging The Judicial Processes: Certain Rules, Analogous To Privileges, Protect the Confidentiality of Judicial Processes – Jury Deliberations

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 19:12:36 +0000

FRE 606(b) prohibits a juror from testifying about the jury’s deliberations, except that a juror may testify about (1) extraneous and prejudicial information improperly brought to any juror’s attention; and (2) any outside influence brought to bear upon any juror.

Grand Jury Proceedings

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 19:12:36 +0000

A. General Rule:

Federal grand jury proceedings, and most state grand jury proceedings, are confidential. Transcripts of grand jury testimony and deliberations are available only when

1.
A litigant makes a substantial showing of need (for example, in a challenge claiming racial discrimination in the grand jury); or,

2.
When the grand jury testimony is either exculpatory material, or witness impeachment material that must be disclosed to a criminal defendant in order to guarantee his right to a fair trial.

Parent-Child Privilege

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 19:12:35 +0000

Some states recognize a limited parent-child privilege analogous to the marital communication privilege. Most such privileges cover statements made by a minor child to a parent.

Insured-Insurer Privilege

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 19:12:34 +0000

Certain states recognize a privilege for communication between an insured and insurer regarding incidents which (1) the insured is obligated to report; and, (2) for which the insurer is obligated to indemnify the insured.

Priest-Penitent Privilege

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 19:12:34 +0000

The priest-penitent privilege recognizes that priests and other religious counselors have religious obligations to maintain the confidentiality of confessional information.

Accountant-Client Privilege

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 19:12:33 +0000

A. Generally:

An accountant-client privilege is slowly developing in many states.

B. Federal Privilege for Auditor Work Papers:

Acting under FRE 501, federal courts have recognized a limited privilege for the work papers of certain auditors. For example, the Securities Exchange Act requires corporations to maintain an independent auditing system and federal courts recognize the extension of a privilege between the corporation and the auditor.

Journalist Privilege

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 19:12:33 +0000

The Supreme Court has held that the press enjoys no special evidentiary privileges under the First Amendment. However, several states have developed statutory shields provide the press with a privilege not to divulge confidential sources of information.

Miscellaneous Privileges – Other Privileges

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 19:12:32 +0000

Aside from these privileges, some states and some federal courts have created or acknowledged other privileges that reflect a consensus about the need the promotion and protection of other for confidential relationships.

Governmental Privilege – Generally

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 19:12:31 +0000

As to the application of privileges, the law treats the government as an individual, who can assert privileges when it is either (a) a party to a judicial proceeding or (b) subpoenaed as a witness whose testimony is sought for a judicial proceeding. For example, government attorneys may claim the protections of the work product privilege; and, the government may invoke the attorney-client privilege to prevent a government attorney from testifying about information acquired in the course of representing the government.