AKZO NOBEL LOSES LAWYER EMAIL COURT BATTLE
October 1st, 2010
BY KEITH NUTHALL
DUTCH chemicals giant Akzo Nobel has lost a case at the European Court of Justice (ECJ) where it was seeking to protect the confidentiality of advice offered by in-house lawyers. The company argued these documents were protected by legal privilege under European Union (EU) law. But the court disagreed, saying in-house legal advice could be seized by investigating competition officials.
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DUTCH chemicals giant Akzo Nobel has lost a case at the European Court of Justice (ECJ) where it was seeking to protect the confidentiality of advice offered by in-house lawyers. The company argued these documents were protected by legal privilege under European Union (EU) law. But the court disagreed, saying in-house legal advice could be seized by investigating competition officials.
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