Are attorneys bound by confidentiality provisions within settlement agreements that they sign “approving as to form and content?” That is the issue in a California case filed by Monster Energy against attorneys who divulged the existence of a settlement in a wrongful death case that they filed against Monster Energy.
In that case, the California Supreme Court held that a lawsuit against the lawyers could proceed despite the lawyers’ assertion that such a ruling would implicate their right to free speech. The lawyers argued that they only approved the agreement as to “form and content” and did not agree to be bound by the confidentiality portion of the agreement. The court held that a fact-finder could reasonably conclude that the attorneys agreed to be bound and allowed the lawsuit to proceed.
