In an article for Corporate Counsel,Partners Brandon D. Fox and David M. Greenwald and Associate Jenna L. Conwisar share their insight into the use of filter teams and special masters and discuss the steps companies should take to ensure that privileged documents don't fall into the hands of prosecutors.
The article references former President Donald Trump's request for appointment of a third-party Special Master to review the documents seized from his Mar-a-Lago home, his concern about the prosecution team having access to privileged materials, and the creation of a filter team. The authors write, "to protect privilege following seizure of documents, it is of paramount importance to act quickly. Counsel should contact the investigation team immediately and identify specific concerns regarding privileged information that may have been seized. If the government fails to agree to adequate protocols, it may be necessary to seek relief from the court."
Mr. Fox is the Managing Partner of Jenner & Block's Los Angeles office, co-chair of the Investigations, Compliance, and Defense Practice, and a former federal prosecutor. He has represented companies and individuals in complex litigation and white-collar matters, and has led internal investigations of alleged corruption, securities fraud, and a wide-variety of other matters.
Mr. Greenwald is a litigation partner with Jenner & Block who has tried cases in federal and state courts, arbitrated cases in the U.S. and Europe, and conducted criminal and civil internal investigations on three continents. Mr. Greenwald is co-author of Testimonial Privileges (West 2022), and co-editor of Protecting Confidential Legal Information: A Handbook for Analyzing Issues Under The Attorney-Client Privilege And Work Product Doctrine, (Jenner & Block 2019).
Ms. Conwisar is an associate in Jenner & Block's Litigation Department and a member of the firm's Associates Committee. She received her JD from UCLA School of Law in 2021 and is based in the firm's Los Angeles office.
Originally published by Corporate Counsel
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
