The Supreme Court has asked the Board of Governors to consider an amendment that would create a new exception to the confidentiality rule.

“Essentially what the amendment does is that it allows a lawyer to disclose confidential information to protect a minor client from potential risk of danger or harm,” Rules Committee Chair Stephanie Marchman told colleagues at a Board of Governors meeting earlier this month.

In a November 12 letter, justices set a May 1 deadline to file a rules petition or report with proposed revisions to Bar Rule 4-1.6 (Confidentiality of Information), that would “allow a lawyer to reveal confidential information about a client when the client is a minor child who may be in danger or at risk of harm.”