In re Von Bulow
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
828 F.2d 94 (2d Cir. 1987)
Claus von Bulow (defendant), acquitted on appeal after being convicted of attempting to murder his wife Martha, was later civilly sued by Martha's children (plaintiffs) for assault, negligence, fraud, and RICO violations. While that civil suit was pending, von Bulow's appellate attorney published a book about the criminal case, which von Bulow helped with and encouraged, and which quoted excerpts — but not the complete text — of conversations between von Bulow and his attorney. The plaintiffs moved to compel disclosure of the underlying attorney-client communications, arguing the book waived privilege; the district court agreed and ordered disclosure not just of the full conversations excerpted in the book, but of all related subject-matter areas and conversations with other defense attorneys. Von Bulow sought a writ of mandamus to vacate that order.
Whether an extrajudicial disclosure of an attorney-client communication, not later used by the client in a judicial proceeding to his adversary's prejudice, waives the privilege as to the undisclosed portions of that communication.