Legal privilege entitles a party to withhold evidence, written or oral, from a third party or a court. There are two elements to legal professional privilege: legal advice privilege, which covers confidential communications between a lawyer and a client made for giving or receiving legal advice; and litigation privilege, which covers confidential communications – between a lawyer and a client, or between a lawyer or a client and a third party – that are being used in litigation.

Legal professional privilege recently came under the spotlight in Financial Reporting Council Ltd v Sports Direct International plc [2018] EWHC 2284 (Ch). The case arose out of an investigation by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) into the conduct of auditor Grant Thornton and its role in the audit of Sports Direct’s accounts.