In a family law dispute concerning spousal support and equalization, the responding party filed affidavit materials referencing settlement negotiations, offers to settle, case conference briefs, and solicitor-client communications.
The moving party sought an order striking those portions of the record on the basis of settlement privilege, solicitor-client privilege, and the confidentiality provisions of the Family Law Rules.
The court reviewed the governing common law principles protecting settlement communications and the statutory confidentiality regime under Rules 17 and 18.
It held that settlement discussions, offers to settle, conference brief materials, and solicitor-client communications are presumptively privileged and cannot be included in the court record absent exceptional circumstances.
Most of the impugned passages and exhibits were therefore struck from the record.
