attorney-client-privilege attorney-fees collections conflict-of-interest
Can a lawyer use privileged information to collect fees from a client?
<p>Suppose that:</p>
<ol>
<li>A client is in debt to an attorney for legal services.</li>
<li>That attorney learns, in the necessary and proper course of representing the client, that the client is receiving some payments.  Presumably this information is &quot;privileged.&quot;</li>
</ol>
<p>Can the attorney use that privileged information in an effort to collect on the client's legal services debt?</p>

<p>Yes. The lawyer can use this information.</p>
<p>The privilege is a privilege against involuntary disclosure to third-parties. There is a parallel duty of confidentiality not to disclose information revealed to the lawyer to third parties.</p>
<p>But, the lawyer is not revealing the information to third-parties in a collection capacity. And, there are exceptions to both the privilege and to the duty of confidentiality that apply in the case of disputes between lawyers and clients.</p>

<p><strong>Presumably this information is &quot;privileged.&quot;</strong></p>
<p>Not necessarily. Different jurisdictions take slightly different approaches to Legal Professional Privilege but in general it relates to, and prevents the disclosure of, communications between a lawyer and the client that relate to litigation and/or legal advice.  So unless the client provided the information to the lawyer for the specific purposes defined by the jurisdiction it probably isn't privileged and can be available to settle a genuine and payable debt.</p>
