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S 3217 110th Congress Senate Crime and Law Enforcement Attorney-client privilege Civil actions and liability Criminal investigation Evidence (Law) Federal employees Government Operations and Politics Government attorneys Indictments Law Legal fees Public prosecutors

Attorney-Client Privilege Protection Act of 2008

Introduced: June 26, 2008 See on congress.gov
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Jun 26, 2008
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Jun 26, 2008
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S6294-6295)
Jun 26, 2008
Introduced in Senate
 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Attorney-Client Privilege Protection Act of 2008 - Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit any U.S. agent or attorney, in any federal investigation or criminal or civil enforcement matter, including any form of administrative proceeding or adjudication, from: (1) demanding or requesting that an organization, or a current or former employee or agent of such organization, waive the protections of the attorney-client privilege or attorney work product doctrine; (2) offering to reward or actually rewarding an organization, or current or former employee or agent, for waiving such protections; or (3) threatening adverse treatment or penalizing an organization, or current or former employee or agent, for declining to waive those protections.

Prohibits a U.S. agent or attorney in any federal investigation or criminal or civil enforcement matter, including any form of administrative proceeding or adjudication, from considering specified conduct in: (1) making a civil or criminal charging or enforcement decision relating to an organization, or one of its current or former employees or agents; or (2) determining whether an organization, or a current or former employee or agent, is cooperating with the government.

Numbers among the actions a U.S. agent or attorney may not use as a charging decision condition or a cooperation-determining factor: (1) any valid assertion of the protection of the attorney-client privilege or attorney work product doctrine; (2) the provision of counsel to, or contribution to the legal defense fees or expenses of, a current or former employee or agent of an organization; (3) entry into, or existence of, a valid joint-defense, information-sharing, or common-interest agreement between an organization and a current or former employee or agent, or among its current or former employees; (4) the sharing of relevant information in anticipation of or in response to an investigation or enforcement matter between an organization and a current or former employee or agent, or among its current or former employees, unless shuch sharing is itself an offense; or (5) the failure to terminate the employment or affiliation of or otherwise sanction any employee or agent of the organization because of the employee's or agent's decision to exercise personal constitutional rights or other legal protections in response to a government request.

Prohibits a U.S. agent or attorney from demanding or requesting that an organization or an affiliated person not take any such action.

What's happening now June 26, 2008

Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

 Committees of jurisdiction 1