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3 pages/β‰ˆ825 words
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3 Sources
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Subject:
Law
Type:
Research Paper
Language:
English (U.S.)
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Topic:

Clergy-Penitent Privilege

Research Paper Instructions:

Your goal in conducting this research is to develop a basic understanding of the elements of the “clergy-penitent privilege” in New York and the kinds of facts courts look for in evaluating whether the privilege applies. Please be sure to identify cases that actually discuss the application of this privilege and not simply cases that reference it in passing. Before you begin, remember the research strategies that we have discussed in class and that you have used in your past research assignments, including “the Mercedes-Benz” approach, planning, designing carefully crafted searches within specific jurisdictions and/or sources, using secondary sources to both educate yourself about the area of law and to help you find primary law, and keeping a log of your research results. There are two documents: “Legal Research Worksheets” and “TA Research Tips” as resources that you may find useful for this and future legal research. In addition, I encourage you to review Adam Mackie’s PowerPoints from our research classes. You research will be the foundation for the legal memo you will eventually write. Therefore, investing the time to find and understand the law is critical. In particular, the more you make an effort to find good case law now, the higher quality our class discussions and my guidance on this assignment can be. Questions 1. State the legal issue that you are researching as precisely as you can. One to two sentences should be sufficient. 4 2. What was the most useful secondary source you found and why? Provide the correct Bluebook citation for the secondary source. 3. Generally speaking, what is the “clergy-penitent privilege”? Provide a correct Bluebook citation for either a secondary or primary source for your answer. 4. What is the purpose of the clergy-penitent privilege? Explain the purpose (in your own words if possible) and provide the correct Bluebook citation to either a primary or secondary authority that you are relying on. 5. Does the clergy-penitent privilege apply only to clergy of a particular religion? Explain with a correct Bluebook citation to a primary authority. 6. Is every statement made to a pastor or minister privileged? Explain with a correct Bluebook citation to a primary authority. 7. There are multiple decisions on the clergy-penitent-privilege. Please provide the correct Bluebook citations for four cases you would use in a legal memo on this issue and provide a 2-3 sentence case brief summarizing each case and why you selected it. 8. Research Process: Did you use Lexis or Westlaw or both? Briefly describe your research process, including some search terms you used. What was the most difficult and/or time-consuming part of your research? How long did you spend on the research?

Research Paper Sample Content Preview:
Client-Penitent Privilege
The legal issue to be researched is whether Pastor Lucas Martin can assert the clergy-penitent privilege in New York to refuse to testify about the two conversations he had with his parishioner Fred Emerson before a Westchester County grand jury's investigation into a fatal hit-and-run automobile accident. The most useful secondary source that I found was Robert F. Radel and A. Labbe, The Clergy-Penitent Privilege: An Overview, 64, FDCC Quarterly 4 , 385 (2015): 385. The utility of the source stems from its comprehensive discussion of the clergy-penitent privilege focusing not only on the origins and relevance of the privilege but also on the debate surrounding it.
The clergy-penitent privilege is a legal privilege that allows a person to refuse to disclose confidential communications made to a member of the clergy (such as a priest, minister, or rabbi) in their capacity as a spiritual advisor, N.Y. C.P.L.R. Law § 4505. The purpose of the clergy-penitent privilege is to promote free and open communication between a penitent and their spiritual advisor, which is considered essential to the penitent's religious practice and belief. The privilege is intended to encourage individuals to seek spiritual guidance and support without fear that their confidential communications will be disclosed in legal proceedings, thus fostering a sense of trust and confidentiality in the clergy-penitent relationship.
In the State of New York, the clergy-penitent privilege applies to clergy of all religions. New York's Evidence Rule 4505 recognizes the clergy-penitent privilege as a rule of evidence that "extends to a priest, rabbi, minister, or other similar functionary of a religious organization or an individual reasonably believed so to be by the person consulting him or her" (NY C.P.L.R. § 4505). There is no requirement that the clergy belongs to a specific religion.
However, the clergy-penitent privilege does not apply to all statements made to a pastor or minister. The privilege only applies to "confidential communications" made to a clergy member in their capacity as a spiritual advisor. Communications made outside the scope of the clergy-penitent relationship, or communications made with the understanding that they will not be kept confidential, are not privileged. New York's Evidence Rule 4505 provides that the privilege applies only to confidential communications made either "as an act of faith or in a professional capacity." The rule further specifies t...
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