Utilizing 6th Circ.’s Expanded Internal Investigation Protection
A recent federal appellate court decision demonstrates one way that businesses can use a very limited showing to protect internal investigations from discovery in commercial litigation.
In reversing a district court decision to force disclosure, a unanimous U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit panel led by Chief U.S. Circuit Judge Jeffrey Sutton in In re: FirstEnergy Corp. observed on Aug. 7 that “[w]hat matters for attorney-client privilege is not what a company does with its legal advice, but simply whether a company seeks legal advice.” Similarly, the court found work-product protection based only on circumstantial evidence of anticipated litigation.
Savvy clients looking to protect internal investigations can use this precedent to their advantage, while those looking to force production will need to employ a carefully calibrated approach.
Click here to read the full article.
TAGS:
Contributors:
Recent Insights
Read MoreWorkplace Safety Obligations at the Edge of the First Amendment
Client Alert | January 23, 2026Diverging Paths on Health Care Affordability: Inside the White House and Congressional GOP Plans
Client Alert | January 23, 2026Appropriate Timing: Appropriations Legislation Enters the Home Stretch
Client Alert | January 23, 2026Trump Issues Executive Order on Institutional Investor Purchases of Single-Family Homes
Client Alert | January 22, 2026What to Know about Maryland’s 2026 Legislative Session
Client Alert | January 21, 2026CEQA News You Can Use – Volume 10, Issue 4 – January 2026
You have chosen to send an email to Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck or one of its lawyers. The sending and receipt of this email and the information in it does not in itself create and attorney-client relationship between us.
If you are not already a client, you should not provide us with information that you wish to have treated as privileged or confidential without first speaking to one of our lawyers.
If you provide information before we confirm that you are a client and that we are willing and able to represent you, we may not be required to treat that information as privileged, confidential, or protected information, and we may be able to represent a party adverse to you and even to use the information you submit to us against you.
I have read this and want to send an email.