The revelation that a U.S. ally monitored an American law firm’s communications with a foreign government client stoked privacy concerns within the legal community and could give lawyers a new opening to challenge U.S. surveillance programs.
The Feb. 15 New York Times report that an Australian intelligence agency intercepted messages between Indonesian officials and a U.S. law firm came as no surprise to many lawyers who represent foreign governments or work on National Security Agency-related litigation. According to a document obtained by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, the Australian spy agency had its U.S. counterpart’s blessing to capture communications on Indonesia’s trade talks with the United States.
