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Patrick, Anon 11.42 here again.

I absolutely agree that there is a difference between advising a client after the fact and assisting them in perjury - the rules already deal with that.

You have a duty to the court and as such you cannot act for someone you know is misleading the court. But privilege still applies unless waived so you cannot turn up to court and say "I am recusing myself because the Defendant is a liar". The very fact that you know the Defendant is a liar is based on the special relationship you enjoy with that client - because of legal professional privilege! The client would not tell you the truth in the first place if they knew you would tell the court later without their consent. As such you would not be able to advise them accordingly.

The client choosing to ignore your advice and end that relationship does not mean you should then expose everything you discussed - because it shows that you cannot be trusted in the future.

Your example of the child murderer is not covered by privilege - it is the imminent threat mentioned in my original post.

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