Blogging & Chatting About Case Strategy Destroys Attorney-Client Privilege

Be careful about blogging and emailing confidential legal information! U.S. Law Week online reports:

 A plaintiff who sent e-mails, posted a blog, and engaged in Gmail chat sessions through which she disclosed information about her attorneys' litigation strategy waived the attorney-client privilege for related information, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ruled Oct. 22 (Lenz v. Universal Music Corp., N.D. Cal., No. 07-3783, 10/22/10).

The lawsuit complains that Universal Music Corp. sent a wrongful Digital Millennium Copyright Act notice to YouTube, requesting the removal of a video depicting a toddler dancing to Prince's “Let's Go Crazy.” According to the complaint Universal knew or should have known that the video was a self-evident non-infringing fair use under 17 U.S.C. §107.

 Here is the full story.

    (Happy St. Nicholas Day!)

(ljs)