Privilege/without prejudice

This overview is a guide and introduction to our suite of documents on privilege and takes you through the main principles in this area.

Privilege is, often, one of the most challenging issues a practitioner faces before and during litigation proceedings and, more particularly, in a disclosure exercise. It encompasses legal professional privilege, namely legal advice privilege and litigation privilege; common interest privilege; joint privilege and without prejudice privilege.

Privilege—general principles

In English law, privilege is a fundamental right allowing a party, or its successors in title, to withhold from production certain documents. For an introduction to the general principles of privilege in civil proceedings, see Practice Note: Privilege—general principles.

Privilege can be asserted over documents which fall into two different categories:

•
legal professional privilege (LPP), ie:
1. ◦
  legal advice privilege, see Practice Note: Legal professional privilege in civil proceedings—Legal advice privilege
2. ◦
  litigation privilege, see Practice Note: Legal professional privilege in civil proceedings—Litigation privilege
•
other forms of privilege, including:
1. ◦
  common interest privilege, see Practice Note: Privilege—joint and common interest privilege—Common interest privilege
2. ◦
  joint privilege (or joint interest

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