In two unrelated stories making headlines today, the ability of attorneys to give corporate clients unvarnished and frank advice is coming under fire.
In New York, AG Cuomo is taking on outside counsel for Bank of America, saying in a letter to Lewis J. Liman of Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton, “…attorney-client privilege is hindering this office’s ability to make fair and fully informed decisions as to what charges, if any, to bring and whether individual Bank of America officers should be charged.”
We also have news out of Rhode Island where the 1st Circuit in U.S. v. Textron Inc. has ruled that tax accrual documents do not fall under the work product protections, even if prepared with litigation in mind, because their principal purpose is accounting, not legal. This creates a split between the circuits and makes the issue ripe for the Supreme Court.
Related posts:
- Cuomo v Bank of America, Round 2
- BofA, Merrill Lynch In-House Counsel Must Reapply for Jobs
- Report Identifies Attorney-Client Accounts as Major Loophole in Money Laundering Laws
- Firm: Banks Are Banking Off Dead Employees
- Court Denies SEC Attempt to Broaden Charges Against BofA
- Attorney Cannot Be Prosecuted Over Bad Advice
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[...] This post was Twitted by AdvertisingLaw [...]
[...] Yesterday, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo began running for Governor errr trying his case in the media when he publicly called on Bank of America to waive attorney-client privilege so that he, AG Cuomo, could determine what crimes if any were committed. Well, it appears the game is afoot and Bank of America is just as familiar with the court of public opinion. Today, Lewis Liman from Cleary Gottleib, BofA’s outside counsel, reminded Cuomo that the Bank has not invoked the privilege and that Cleary has asked to meet with Cuomo on several occasions to clear the matter up. Both sides claim to want to have a heart to heart, but first they want to make sure everyone knows the other guy is stalling. We’ll keep you posted as developments warrant. Share this story: [...]
[...] privilege is becoming an issue back [...]
[...] New York State Attorney General, Andrew M.Cuomo, Bank Of America [...]
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