The Law Office Search: An Emerging Problem and Some Suggested Solutions

Authors

Lackland H. Bloom Jr., Southern Methodist University, Dedman School of LawFollow

Abstract

A law office search threatens the attorney-client relationship by jeopardizing values protected by the fourth, fifth, and sixth amendments. After reviewing recent developments that underlie the sudden emergence of the law office search, Professor Bloom examines the nature of this threat and suggests that the values of the attorney-client relationship can be reconciled with the needs of law enforcement by requiring the police to use a subpoena rather than a search warrant when seeking documentary evidence from an attorney. Professor Bloom considers whether this "subpoena preference rule" either is required by the fourth amendment or can be implemented by nonconstitutional means. Professor Bloom then describes how, in the absence of such a rule, society nonetheless can accommodate the competing interests of effective law enforcement and effective legal representation.

Publication Title

Georgetown Law Journal

Document Type

Article

Recommended Citation

Lackland H. Jr. Bloom, The Law Office Search: An Emerging Problem and Some Suggested Solutions, 69 Geo. L. J. 1 (1980)