PRUDENTIAL HEADS TO SUPREME COURT

摘要

When the Prudential v HMRC case goes before the Supreme Court in November, the Law Lords will consider whether legal professional privilege should only apply to the clients of solicitors and barristers. Andrew Hobbs, who leads Ernst & Young's regulatory and public policy team, says: 'The judicial trend is one of erosion, not extension. I find it hard to believe the Supreme Court would say privilege should be extended to other professionals. But it should acknowledge the LSA throws a spanner in the works.' This 'spanner' is the inconsistency in the differing status (privileged or not) of the advice provided by lawyers and accountants working side by side in some future multidisciplinary practice.