Serena Dai of the Associated Press reports:
Amidst photos and handwritten letters in auction boxes connected to former Gov. Rod Blagojevich are confidential client-attorney papers from his lawyer days and opposition research on his 2006 gubernatorial race rival Judy Baar Topinka, a Northwestern University librarian said Wednesday.
Librarian Jeffrey Garrett bought 18 boxes of files, photos, and videotapes at the Boyer-Rosene Moving and Storage auction last Thursday on behalf of Northwestern’s special libraries, which documents the careers of significant alum, he said.
Read more in the Chicago Tribune.
Well, we’ve seen cases where lawyers improperly disposed of confidential client records so this wouldn’t exactly be a first. What’s a bit different about this case is how the confidential files wound up where they did. While people can point fingers at who packed up documents, who stored them, who was responsible for paying storage fees etc., I would think that ultimately, it’s the attorney’s responsibility to ensure that the confidentiality of client records is protected. Yes, even in the middle of a public scandal and trial.
Now will anyone actually get notified that their client records have been exposed or are now in the possession of others? I mean, it’s just paper records, right?