A divorce contains many extremely personal details that you may not want to share with even close friends or family. However, it is necessary to share details of your life with your attorney in order to effectively represent you and your interest in a divorce proceeding. Your Florida Divorce Attorney understands the delicacy of these personal details, we hold the Attorney Client Privilege in the highest regard and see it as a foundation for our relationship with you. Your attorney can further explain the details the bounds of such confidentiality.
Florida statute 90.502 provides the boundaries and regulations for the Lawyer-Client privilege. This privilege governs communications between lawyers and their clients in the course of the client obtaining legal advice. The lawyer is prohibited from revealing any part of these communications whether they be written or oral. Your information will only be shared within the legal team of the lawyer who are bound by the same confidentiality restrictions. Further, if your information will be revealed to outside parties, your consent will be necessary prior to any action or revelation. You, alone, hold this privilege. Therefore, you have the ability “to refuse to disclose, and to prevent any other person from disclosing, the contents of confidential communications when such other person learned of the communications because they were made in the rendition of legal services to the client.” 90.502 Therefore, you shall feel secure sharing any details regarding your personal situation with your attorney, as they are legally bound to hold these items in confidence. Your conversations with your attorney should be an area where you feel safe and comfortable, not one where you must be cautious of what you might say. Further, this privilege will remain in effect even after the conclusion of your case or end of your lawyer client relationship. Therefore, even into your future you will feel secure in the private information disclosed to your attorney will in fact remain private. Be open with your attorney and allow them to formulate a plan to best aid you in your divorce proceedings.
However, there are times when this privilege is revoked. There will be no lawyer client privilege if: you use your lawyer’s services to seek advice or enable aid to anyone in furtherance of a crime or plan to commit a crime; the communication was not intended to be confidential; the communication is “relevant to an issue between parties who claim through the same deceased client;” the communication “is relevant to an issue of breach of duty by the lawyer to the client or by the client to the lawyer, arising from the lawyer client relationship;” the “communication is relevant to an issue concerning the intention or competence of a client executing an attested document to which the lawyer is an attesting witness, or concerning the execution or attestation of the document;” or the “communication is relevant to a matter of common interest between two or more clients, or their successors in interest, if the communication was made by any of them to a lawyer retained or consulted in common when offered in a civil action between the clients or their successors in interest.” Although these exclusions are for a minority of people, it is important to ensure you are keeping your communications with your attorney to the bounds of your family law matter.
Your Florida Divorce Attorney and their team will ensure your information remains private and confidential. We take extra precautions to ensure your privacy, and to ensure you feel comfortable revealing such intimate details of your life with us. We take this responsibility seriously and will fight to protect your rights throughout your divorce case.
Speaking to an attorney at our Florida office is free of charge, and we accept calls 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Contact us at 850-307-5221 or complete an online contact form to get in touch with a member of our team today.