Employment lawyers spend their days consulting with their clients, guiding them through troublesome human resources issues, recommending disciplinary approaches, drafting performance improvement plans, drafting scripts for meetings between lawyers and their clients, and providing other assistance in the hope of avoiding legal difficulties and employment litigation.

Clients and their lawyers reasonably expect that this advice is protected by the attorney-client privilege or the work product doctrine. It is provided in response to requests for legal advice in scenarios that may well pose significant legal risk.