Lawyers are getting antsy about compliance with the privacy provisions of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Financial Modernization Act.
In particular, they don't want to mail privacy notices to clients—especially with only a few weeks' notice.
That's the substance of a letter sent by Steven C. Krane, president of the New York State Bar Association, to the Federal Trade Commission.
Krane argued that lawyers are already subject to strict rules about confidentiality, and that they shouldn't have to send privacy notices to clients.
The Gramm-Leach-Bliley measures, which require financial institutions to mail privacy notices to customers, also apply to lawyers working in the areas of tax law, estate planning, bankruptcy, and domestic violence, according to Krane. However, the fact that this provision also applies to law firms wasn't noticed until last month.
The law requires that privacy notices be sent by July 1.
Krane wrote to FTC Chairman Timothy J. Muris that "client confidences are protected by the attorney-client privilege." Forcing lawyers to send privacy notices will "serve to confuse clients and to dilute….the public expectation of privacy in their dealings with counsel," he continued.
He continued that having lawyers comply is "unnecessary and provides no benefit to the public."
