Understanding Attorney-Client Privilege: What It Is and When It Can Be Broken (Full Transcript)

Speaker 1: You've probably heard about attorney-client privilege if you've watched any courtroom TV show or movie. But what exactly is privilege and how does it work when there are serious charges or claims against you? Hi, everyone. Lawyer Brit here. In a nutshell, attorney-client privilege is the practice of confidentiality between an attorney and their client, or sometimes a potential client. Everything a client says, good or bad, stays between the two of them. But there are a few reasons why attorneys can break attorney-client privilege and disclose what a client tells them. Watch until the end of the video to find out. If you're hiring an attorney to represent you, the basis for any successful legal case is transparency with your legal team. Your attorney should know every aspect of your side of the story to be able to defend you effectively. Attorney-client privilege instills trust between attorney and client so that the attorney may effectively present a case. Your attorney is on your side and is there to protect your rights. Innocent, guilty, liable or not, it's your attorney's duty to represent you in an unbiased manner, challenging evidence, witness credibility, and aspects of the case to put on the best case or defense possible. Now, your attorney cannot incriminate you if you have admitted guilt to them. However, depending on the severity of the charge and the strength of the evidence, they may seek a plea deal in a criminal case. While anything you say to your attorney is confidential in relation to your case after something has happened, that doesn't mean that you can use privilege to get advice on how to commit a crime or involve your legal team in any preemptive unlawful activity. This is because at that point, you would be involving your attorney as an accomplice and they could be subpoenaed to testify against you. Additionally, if a client discloses to their attorney information related to future death or severe bodily harm to another person, the attorney may have a duty to break the attorney-client privilege and disclose the threat to authorities. To wrap this up, attorney-client privilege is an important part of the relationship between you and your legal team. It ensures that you can openly discuss the facts of your case and strategize with your team on the best path forward. If you enjoyed this video, please remember to like, subscribe, and hit that notification bell to be notified every time I upload a new video.