Victory for Confidentiality: Korean Supreme Court Upholds Attorney-Client Privilege

By Juwon Kang, April 19, 2026

A recent landmark ruling by the Supreme Court of Korea marks a significant turning point for legal privacy, effectively recognizing Attorney-Client Privilege (ACP) as a constitutional right.

Here are the key takeaways from the decision:

* The Ruling: The Supreme Court overturned a lower court’s guilty verdict, ruling that the seizure of recorded phone conversations between a defendant and their attorney is illegal.

* Constitutional Protection: The court stated that seizing such recordings constitutes a “grave violation” of the constitutional right to receive the assistance of counsel.

* Procedural Misconduct: In this specific case, investigators initially failed to find evidence of the alleged crime. Instead of deleting unrelated files, they kept recordings of the defendant’s legal consultations and used them to obtain a second warrant—a move the court deemed a violation of due process.

* The “Fruit of the Poisonous Tree”: The court ruled that because the initial seizure was illegal, any secondary evidence derived from those recordings (including subsequent statements from the lawyer or the defendant) is inadmissible in court.

* Inviolable Even with Consent: Notably, the court held that the illegality was so severe that it could not be “cured” or made valid, even though the defendant had later agreed to let the recordings be used as evidence during the original trial.

* Exceptions are Narrow: While ACP is now more firmly established, the court noted it can only be bypassed in extreme cases, such as when the lawyer is an accomplice to the crime or if the defendant explicitly consents to the seizure at the time it occurs.

* Legal Significance: Legal experts view this as a definitive confirmation that ACP is protected under the Constitution, regardless of whether specific amendments to the Attorney Act have been finalized.

Article: https://www.lawtimes.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=218264