A divided Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled that, in derivative litigation, communications between a corporation’s current management and legal counsel are protected by attorney-client privilege, which cannot be overcome by a showing of “good cause” by plaintiffs seeking access to those communications.

The justices ruled 5-2 in Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation v. Ziegler to reverse a Commonwealth Court decision adopting the qualified attorney-client privilege originally set forth in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit’s 1970 ruling in Garner v. Wolfinbarger.

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