Privilege report released

Press, 20 July 1977, Page 11

Privilege report released

PA Wellington

The report of the torts and general law reform committee on professional privilege in the law of evidence has been released by the Minister of Justice (Mr Thomson).

The committee had been asked to consider whether an evidentiary privilege should continue to be held by, or should now be granted to, several professional groups. Privilege is the right to refuse to disclose in court, or to allow another person to disclose in court, evidence that is relevant to a certain case.

The report recommended that the present right to privilege of lawyers, clergymen, and marriage guidance counsellors should not be altered, but that the existing privilege of doctors should be extended in some ways.

Patent attorneys were considered to have established a good claim to privilege, and the committee recomended that the Evidence Act, 1908, be amended to give effect to this.

The remaining occupations, including teachers and journalists, were not granted any special privilege. Th committee said that it believed they were adequately protected by the general discretion of the court to disallow a question or permit a witness to refuse to answer. However, the report recommended that the discretion be set out in the Evidence Act, 1908, so as to place its existence and scope beyond doubt. Mr Thomson said that the Government hoped to introduce legislation this year to give effect to the committee’s recommendations.