News & Analysis as of September 13, 2024

Confidential Information

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The Freedom of Information Act is a United States federal statute enacted in 1966 to promote government transparency and the free exchange of public information. Under FOIA, any individual can request federal agency records and enforce that right in a court of law. However, not all agency records can be requested; there are nine exempt categories of information. In addition to the federal law, many states have passed their own freedom of information acts. These acts are often similar but not always identical to the federal version. less -

Your Attorney Cannot Always Shield You From the FOIA

Pullman & Comley - Labor, Employment and... on 7/16/2024

Clients sometimes include me on communications merely to protect themselves from Connecticut’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), believing that anything sent to me is automatically covered by the attorney-client privilege. ...more

FOIA Decisions Clarify Burden of Proof for Invoking Pre-decisional, Attorney-Client, and Security Measures Exemptions

Franczek P.C. on 7/19/2021

Two recent Illinois Appellate Court opinions provide public bodies clarity regarding the pre-decisional, attorney-client, and security measures exemptions of the FOIA. In the first case, Chicago Public Media v. Cook County...more

Connecticut Supreme Court To In-House Counsel: Your Internal Communications Are Privileged Only If Their "Primary" Purpose Was To...

Pullman & Comley, LLC on 3/14/2017

In September 2016, the Connecticut Supreme Court issued a decision providing guidance on questions that frequently bedevil in-house counsel: are internal communications to and from in-house counsel protected by the...more

Drafting Agendas: Three Reasons to be More Specific than “Attorney-Client Privileged Communication – Executive Session...

Pullman & Comley - School Law on 4/22/2016

One of the most regularly used reasons to enter executive session is to discuss a matter that would result in the disclosure of communications that are privileged by the attorney-client relationship. The agenda item often...more

Loose Lips Sink Ships: The Limits of the Attorney-Client Privilege and the Dangers of “Public” Reliance Upon Your Attorney’s...

Pullman & Comley - School Law on 9/11/2014

Public agencies often secure opinions from legal counsel to guide their actions. However, these agencies should be aware that what they say in public about the advice given may jeopardize the confidentiality of the legal...more

Oops and the FOIA, Part One; Kadri v. Groton Board of Education and Protections From the Accidental Disclosure of Attorney-Client...

Pullman & Comley - School Law on 3/18/2014

What happens when your agency’s lawyer sends out a confidential letter that is somehow leaked? A relatively recent decision by the Freedom of Information Commission [“FOIC”] appears to indicate that all is not lost, as...more

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