Client Confidence On Trial: Advocate-Client Privilege And The Limits Of Judicial Compelled Disclosure

Introduction

The sanctity of advocate-client privilege lies at the heart of the adversarial justice system. Without the assurance of confidentiality, the right to effective legal representation would be reduced to a hollow procedural formality. In McDonald's India Pvt. Ltd. v. State (NCT of Delhi) & Anr.¹, the Delhi High Court was called upon to examine whether a court, in the exercise of its supervisory or revisional jurisdiction, can compel advocates to disclose the source of documents filed on behalf of their clients.

The judgment reaffirms the foundational principle embedded in Section 126 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, that professional communication between a lawyer and client are protected from disclosure, save in narrowly defined exceptional circumstances. The ruling draws a clear constitutional and statutory boundary between judicial inquiry and professional confidentiality, cautioning courts against transforming advocates into witnesses against