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Waldrip v. Head

A habeas petitioner who claims ineffective assistance of counsel waives the attorney-client privilege and work product doctrine to the extent that his trial counsel's documents and files are relevant to his specific allegations of ineffectiveness.

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A jury convicted Tommy Lee Waldrip of murder, and he was sentenced to death.1 After Waldrip filed a habeas petition alleging ineffective assistance of counsel, the warden sought the files of Waldrip’s trial and appellate counsel. The habeas court granted the warden’s motion to compel access to the complete files of Waldrip’s trial and appellate counsel. We granted this application to determine the extent of the waiver of the attorney-client privilege when a habeas petitioner asserts a claim for ineffective assistance of trial counsel. Following the rule adopted in other states, we hold that the filing of an ineffective assistance claim is an implied waiver of the attorney-client privilege limited to the documents that are relevant to the petitioner’s claim. Because of the potential problems that would be created by public disclosure of the documents, we further conclude that Waldrip is entitled to a protective order prohibiting disclosure of the files obtained in this habeas proceeding to persons other than those needed to assist the warden in rebutting the claim of ineffectiveness. Therefore, we reverse.

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