Privilege For GM Internal Investigation Is Upheld

A decision in the Southern District of New York is a win for companies being challenged on their claim of privilege for internal investigations, write attorneys from Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP. The district court upheld GM’s privilege claim for an internal investigation related to the GM ignition switch failures. The court rejected the “primary purpose” test, according to which legal advice has to be the primary purpose of the lawyers’ work, and applied a less stringent test, requiring that legal advice be only “a” purpose. The writers note that other courts have come to a different conclusion, and they offer some tips for increasing the chances that an internal investigation will be ruled privileged if challenged.