The term "attorney-client privilege" means that with few exceptions, anything you tell your attorney is confidential- that is, he cannot reveal it to anyone for any reason. There are a few select instances where this isn't true, but for the most part you can count on the fact that what you tell your attorney will go no further. If you're not sure, ask your attorney to explain the limits of attorney-client privilege.

The point of mentioning this is so you'll be comfortable with being totally frank and honest with your attorney. Don't make the mistake of thinking that if he doesn't know about something you may have done that he can defend you better. In nearly every instance, the reverse is true.

Worse yet, if your attorney finds out the hard way that you've concealed information from him, he may (with good reason) begin to doubt what you've told him already, and be suspicious of things you tell him later on in the case. Needeless to say, this could seriously affect your relationship with him, and your case in general.

It's vital that you tell your attorney everything, especially anything that may be sensitive or could harm you if it were to "come to light". I cannot stress this strongly enough- if you conceal something from your attorney and it becomes an issue later, you may lose what would otherwise be a totally solid and "winnable" case.

In some ways it's very much like going to a doctor- you need to tell the doctor everything and let him make a diagnosis from all the available information. Anything less is foolhardy and possibly dangerous.

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