This book examines the lawyer's duty of professional secrecy (also known as the attorney-client privilege) in the twenty-seven Member States of the European Union, the three Member States of the European Economic Area, and Switzerland. It provides valuable information for those working on transactions or litigations which involve several countries – they can use this book to find out to what extent any information shared with or any advice received from a lawyer is protected in each of these countries.

An overview of the scope and limitations of professional secrecy in the European Union, the European Economic Area and Switzerland.

Aim of this work is to provide a guidance to lawyers and other professionals to the current contents of EC law related to the legal professions and to the different national systems in order to simplify the use of the relevant EC rules on professional practice in a different member state and to accomplish a precise knowledge of the influence's framework of 'Europe'; in the national regulated legal professions. This work makes a survey on the evolution of EC law focusing on legal profession and their relationships with the market freedoms and competition rules. It starts from the Treaty provisi.

One of the major challenges facing the legal profession today is how to adapt and apply the concept of attorney-client privilege (or professional secrecy) in an increasingly globalised world. Rules on attorney-client privilege differ significantly from country to country. This book explores such differences within 32 jurisdictions in North, Central and South America and the Caribbean. Together with its complementary volume Professional Secrecy of Lawyers in Europe (Cambridge, 2013), this book explores the creation of a common definition for attorney-client privilege which can be accepted by a wide variety of countries and international institutions. Practice and interpretation within each jurisdiction is mapped and explored, including reference to local laws, ethical rules and case law. This book is a useful resource for those working on transactions or litigations which involve several countries.

One of the major challenges facing the legal profession today is how to adapt and apply the concept of attorney-client privilege (or professional secrecy) in an increasingly globalised world. Rules on attorney-client privilege differ significantly from country to country. This book explores such differences within 32 jurisdictions in North, Central and South America and the Caribbean. Together with its complementary volume Professional Secrecy of Lawyers in Europe (Cambridge, 2013), this book explores the creation of a common definition for attorney-client privilege which can be accepted by a wide variety of countries and international institutions. Practice and interpretation within each jurisdiction is mapped and explored, including reference to local laws, ethical rules and case law. This book is a useful resource for those working on transactions or litigations which involve several countries.

Setting out the current rules on legal professional privilege (LPP), with specific attention to their relevance in competition investigations, this comprehensive book analyses the practice of LPP by the European Commission and its current interpretations in the European Courts. It also compares this to practice in the EU Member States, as well as other jurisdictions including Japan, the UK, and the US.