The EU Court of Justice clarifies that legal professional privilege extends to all communication exchanges with external counsel (Orde van Vlaamse Balies)

The EU Court of Justice ("CJEU") has recently clarified the scope of legal professional privilege ("LPP") under EU law. [1] The CJEU ruled that LPP applies to all communications between EEA-qualified external lawyers [2] and their clients, and is not limited to advice relating to the exercise of the rights of defense. This ruling provides an important clarification at a time when there is a resurgence of dawn raids across Europe following the COVID-19 pandemic. Background The case concerned EU Directive 2011/16/EU on administrative cooperation against tax avoidance and evasion (the "Directive") that established a system of cooperation between Member States' national tax authorities. The Directive included a provision requiring all intermediaries (natural or legal persons assisting the