A federal appeals court recently held that the interview notes of attorneys hired by a public school to investigate allegations of suspected sexual abuse of students by a teacher were protected by the attorney client and work product privilege from discovery in a private lawsuit brought by the alleged victims. (Sandra T.E. v. South Berwyn School District 100, 7th Cir., No. 08-3344, 3/30/10) This decision reversed the ruling of the lower court that the privileges did not apply to lawyers conducting investigations. The appeals court looked at the engagement letter that provided that the attorneys were hired to gather the facts and provide legal advice and therefore found that the privilege did protect the confidentiality of this information.
