2023 New York Laws › CVP - Civil Practice Law and Rules › Article 45 - Evidence › 4503 - Attorney.

§  4503.  Attorney.
(a)  1.  Confidential communication privileged.
Unless the client waives the  privilege,  an  attorney  or  his  or  her
employee,  or any person who obtains without the knowledge of the client
evidence of a confidential communication made between  the  attorney  or
his  or  her  employee  and  the  client  in  the course of professional
employment,  shall  not  disclose,  or  be  allowed  to  disclose   such
communication,  nor  shall  the  client  be  compelled  to disclose such
communication,  in  any  action,  disciplinary  trial  or  hearing,   or
administrative  action,  proceeding or hearing conducted by or on behalf
of  any  state,  municipal  or  local  governmental  agency  or  by  the
legislature  or  any  committee  or  body  thereof. Evidence of any such
communication obtained  by  any  such  person,  and  evidence  resulting
therefrom,  shall  not  be  disclosed  by  any state, municipal or local
governmental agency or by the  legislature  or  any  committee  or  body
thereof.  The relationship of an attorney and client shall exist between
a professional service corporation organized under  article  fifteen  of
the   business   corporation   law   to  practice  as  an  attorney  and
counselor-at-law and the clients to whom it renders legal services.
2. Personal representatives. (A) For purposes of  the  attorney-client
privilege,  if  the client is a personal representative and the attorney
represents the personal representative in that capacity, in the  absence
of  an agreement between the attorney and the personal representative to
the contrary:
(i) No beneficiary of the estate is,  or  shall  be  treated  as,  the
client  of  the  attorney  solely  by  reason  of  his  or her status as
beneficiary;
(ii) The existence of a fiduciary relationship  between  the  personal
representative  and  a  beneficiary  of  the  estate  does not by itself
constitute or give rise to any waiver of the privilege for  confidential
communications made in the course of professional employment between the
attorney  or  his or her employee and the personal representative who is
the client; and
(iii) The fiduciary's testimony that he  or  she  has  relied  on  the
attorney's advice shall not by itself constitute such a waiver.
(B)  For  purposes  of this paragraph, "personal representative" shall
mean   (i)   the   administrator,   administrator   c.t.a.,    ancillary
administrator,  executor, preliminary executor, temporary administrator,
lifetime trustee or trustee to whom letters have been issued within  the
meaning  of  subdivision thirty-four of section one hundred three of the
surrogate's  court  procedure  act,  and  (ii)  the   guardian   of   an
incapacitated communicant if and to the extent that the order appointing
such  guardian  under  subdivision  (c)  of  section 81.16 of the mental
hygiene law or any subsequent order of any court expressly provides that
the guardian is to be the personal representative of  the  incapacitated
communicant  for  purposes of this section; "beneficiary" shall have the
meaning set forth in subdivision eight of section one hundred  three  of
the  surrogate's court procedure act and "estate" shall have the meaning
set forth in subdivision nineteen of section one hundred  three  of  the
surrogate's court procedure act.
(b)  Wills  and revocable trusts. In any action involving the probate,
validity or construction of a will or,  after  the  grantor's  death,  a
revocable  trust,  an  attorney  or  his  employee  shall be required to
disclose information as to the preparation, execution or  revocation  of
any  will,  revocable  trust, or other relevant instrument, but he shall
not  be  allowed  to  disclose  any   communication   privileged   under
subdivision (a) which would tend to disgrace the memory of the decedent.