The U.S. Supreme Court has dismissed a case asking the Court to
adopt an approach that would broaden the scope of the
attorney-client privilege when communications contain both legal
and nonlegal advice. The Supreme Court agreed to review In re
Grand Jury, in which the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth
Circuit ordered a firm to disclose tax-related communications. The
Ninth Circuit held that the communications were not covered by
attorney-client privilege because their primary purpose
was not to provide legal advice. After accepting the review, the
Supreme Court recently decided to dismiss the case leaving
additional questions, particularly for in-house counsel.
Circuit Split
A split currently exists among various jurisdictions as to
whether legal advice must be the primary purpose of the
communication to obtain privileged status or, conversely, must only
be a significant purpose. The U.S. Court of Appeals for
the Seventh Circuit adds another even stricter
