Respect My Privacy: An Argument for Legal Professional Privilege in Ombuds Communications
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Date
2019-01-11
Authors
Gyde, Matthias
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Oregon
Abstract
Since the latter part of the twentieth century there has been a push to promote the use of various forms of alternative dispute resolution to ease the pressure on America’s overburdened and backlogged court system. Ombuds offices are often used as a tool to help resolve issues and disputes within organizations at an informal level. For these offices to be maximally effective they need to guarantee those who seek their assistance an extremely high degree of confidentiality. To that end, and to further the overall goal of settling disputes outside of the court system, a legally sanctioned professional privilege for ombuds communications should be implemented. The granting of this privilege would not only allow the ombudsperson to perform their duties free from concern of being forced to violate best practices, but it would also give those seeking services peace of mind that their concerns will not be made public.
Description
Keywords
FRE 501, ombuds, ombudsman, privilege