Where a client's solicitors voluntarily provide copies of privileged documents to Police for the purposes of a police investigation, client legal privilege is lost because the Police are entitled to use the contents for investigation and prosecution purposes, meaning the communication is not a 'confidential communication' within s 117(1) of the Evidence Act 1995. A purported condition of confidentiality imposed by the solicitor does not alter this result where the practical reality is that the Police may disclose the contents in the course of their investigation and any prosecution. A determination as to the existence of client legal privilege is not a discretionary decision in a matter of practice and procedure, and leave to appeal may be granted from such a ruling even during the course of a hearing.
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