In international litigation and in lawsuits involving clients and witnesses located overseas, U.S. notions of privilege and confidentiality often confound attorneys and clients alike.
In a recent conference on cross-border investigations I attended, a lawyer from Brazil asserted that the law of privilege in his country protects the confidentiality of communications between counsel and client to the same degree as U.S. law. He said that Brazil’s law absolutely forbids lawyers from revealing to third parties, including government investigators, the details of their advice to clients.
