Also known as: licensed · privileged · license · privilege · defenses to trespass
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A legal right or authorization that exempts conduct from liability or compulsion that would otherwise apply. The right arises from consent, statute, or common law and shields the holder from claims such as trespass, compelled testimony, or forced disclosure.
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Linden Bank sued a borrower for default and calculated lost profits. When preparing initial disclosures, the bank withheld spreadsheets showing its internal valuation model. The borrower moved to compel production. The court denied the motion because the model qualified as privileged work product prepared in anticipation of litigation.
Prosecutors subpoenaed Latoya Lane to testify against her husband in a fraud trial. Lane refused, asserting that the questions concerned confidential marital communications. The court ruled her unavailable under the privilege and admitted her prior statements through another witness.
Luke Latham entered his tenant's apartment to repair a leaking pipe after the tenant granted oral permission. Latham later returned without notice to retrieve tools. Because the tenant had given consent, Latham's initial entry was licensed and did not support a burglary charge.
Lamar Lewis left the Department of Commerce and joined a private firm. A client asked him to use internal agency pricing data against a competitor. Lewis declined because the information remained confidential government information protected by privilege and could not be used to the competitor's disadvantage.
Lillian Locke invited neighbors onto her farm for a picnic. After an argument, she told them to leave. The neighbors remained to finish eating. Their continued presence lost the protection of the consent-based privilege once revocation occurred.
Lumen Capital granted a neighboring owner a permanent right to run a drainage pipe across its lot in exchange for a one-time payment. The owner later tried to revoke the right. Because the arrangement constituted an irrevocable license, courts treated it as an easement that could not be withdrawn.
The exception defeats the burglary element of unlawful entry when the actor possesses consent or other legal authorization to enter the premises. The prosecution must prove the absence of any such right. An affirmative defense of abandonment may also apply if the structure was vacant.
A party may withhold documents supporting a damages computation if they qualify as privileged or protected work product. The producing party must still provide a privilege log describing the withheld items without revealing protected content. Failure to assert the claim properly can result in waiver.
…a medical decision, and basic responsibility for it must rest with the physician. If an individual practitioner abuses the privilege of exercising proper medical judgment, the usual remedies, judicial and intra-professional, are available. Concurring opinions Concurring — Burger, C. J. I agree that, under the…
…would apparently construe the Due Process Clause to protect from all but quite important state regulatory interests any right or privilege
…(b). The Court of Appeals indicated that a delinquency adjudication "is not a conviction' (§ 781); that it affects no right or privilege, including the right to hold public office or to obtain a
…authority and discretion to decide whether to prosecute and what evidence to use, and that a President's decision concerning privileged
…& Handlin, Origin of the American Business Corporation, 5 J. Econ. Hist. 1, 22 (1945). It was “assumed that [they] were legally privileged
A court ruling that a privilege applies exempts the declarant from testifying and satisfies the unavailability requirement. The privilege must be valid and properly invoked. Other grounds such as refusal to testify or memory loss are treated separately.
The privilege ends upon revocation communicated to the actor, expiration of any time limit, or occurrence of a restricting event. The actor retains a limited right of reasonable egress. Continued presence after revocation exposes the actor to trespass liability.
An irrevocable license that confers a permanent right to enter and use land is classified as an easement. Negative easements are instead treated as restrictive covenants. The classification affects transferability and remedies for interference.