Morgan v. Butler

Citations

• 2017 Ohio 816

Syllabus

Ohio Environmental Review Commission erred when it granted appellee's motion to compel production of three e-mails that the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency sought to withhold from discovery due to a claim of attorney-client privilege. De novo review of the three e-mails reveals that an EPA employee involved in the investigation of appellee's verified complaint sent the e-mails in confidence to EPA's in-house legal counsel seeking legal advice or assistance with regard to the EPA's review of appellee's verified complaint. Accordingly, all three e-mails are privileged attorney-client communications. We, therefore, reverse the commission's judgment with regard to e-mails A, B, and C, but we remand this matter for the commission to hold a hearing to determine whether EPA waived the attorney-client privilege with regard to e-mail A by inadvertently producing it in discovery. Judgment reversed and cause remanded with instructions.