Art. 1424.Scope of Discovery; Trial Preparation; Materials

Book II. Ordinary Proceedings · Title III. Production of Evidence · Chapter 3. Discovery · Last amended 2023 · Last verified July 30, 2026

In one sentenceArticle 1424 gives qualified protection to material an adverse party or its attorney prepared in anticipation of litigation, gives an attorney's own mental impressions and opinions far stronger protection, but still lets a party obtain their own prior statement and requires a privilege log when material is withheld.

Full Text of Art. 1424

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A. The court shall not order the production or inspection of any writing, or electronically stored information, obtained or prepared by the adverse party, his attorney, surety, indemnitor, or agent in anticipation of litigation or in preparation for trial unless satisfied that denial of production or inspection will unfairly prejudice the party seeking the production or inspection in preparing his claim or defense or will cause him undue hardship or injustice. Except as otherwise provided in Article 1425(E)(1), the court shall not order the production or inspection of any part of the writing, or electronically stored information, that reflects the mental impressions, conclusions, opinions, or theories of an attorney.

B. A party may obtain without the required showing a statement concerning the action or its subject matter previously made by that party. Upon request, a person not a party may obtain without the required showing a statement concerning the action or its subject matter previously made by that person. If the request is refused, the person may move for a court order. The provisions of Article 1469(4) apply to the award of expenses incurred in relation to the motion. For purposes of this Paragraph, a statement previously made is a written statement signed or otherwise adopted or approved by the person making it, or a stenographic, mechanical, electronically stored, or other recording, or a transcription thereof, which is a substantially verbatim recital of an oral statement by the person making it and contemporaneously recorded.

C. When a party withholds information otherwise discoverable under these rules by claiming that it is privileged or subject to protection as trial preparation material, the party shall make the claim expressly and shall prepare and send to the other parties a privilege log that describes the nature of the documents, communications, or things not produced or disclosed in a manner that, without revealing information itself privileged or protected, will enable other parties to assess the applicability of the privilege or protection.

D. A disclosure of a communication or information covered by the attorney-client privilege or work product protection does not operate as a waiver if the disclosure is inadvertent and is made in connection with litigation or administrative proceedings, and if the person entitled to assert the privilege or work product protection took reasonably prompt measures, once the holder knew of the disclosure, to notify the receiving party of the inadvertence of the disclosure and the privilege asserted. Once notice is received, the receiving party shall either return or promptly safeguard the inadvertently disclosed material, but with the option of asserting a waiver. Even without notice of the inadvertent disclosure from the sending party, if it is clear that the material received is privileged and inadvertently produced, the receiving party shall either return or promptly safeguard the material, and shall notify the sending party of the material received, but with the option of asserting a waiver.

End

Amendment History

Amended by Acts 2023, No. 5, §1, eff. 8/1/2023. Acts 1976, No. 574, §1; Acts 2003, No. 545, §1; Acts 2007, No. 140, §1.

Plain-English Summary

Article 1424 protects trial-preparation material on two different levels. Ordinary work product -- a writing or electronically stored information an adverse party, attorney, surety, indemnitor, or agent prepared in anticipation of litigation or for trial -- can still be produced if denying production would unfairly prejudice the requesting party's ability to prepare their case or cause undue hardship or injustice. An attorney's own mental impressions, conclusions, opinions, or theories sit on a different level: the court generally can't order that material produced at all, with a narrow exception tied to the exceptional-circumstances standard in Article 1425(E)(1) for testifying experts.

Paragraph B carves out a party's own prior statement about the case -- anyone, party or not, can obtain a statement they themselves made without making the special showing the rest of the article requires, and can move to compel it if it's refused.

When a party withholds something as privileged or protected, Article 1424 doesn't let them just stay quiet about it. Paragraph C requires an express claim of privilege and a privilege log describing what's withheld well enough for the other side to test the claim, without giving away the protected content.

Paragraph D adds an inadvertent-disclosure rule: accidentally producing a privileged document doesn't waive the privilege if the disclosure was inadvertent and the holder acted reasonably promptly, once aware of it, to notify the receiving party. The receiving party then has to return or safeguard the material, though they can still contest the privilege claim.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I get my opponent's attorney's notes and strategy in discovery?

Generally no. An attorney's mental impressions, conclusions, opinions, and theories get protection well beyond ordinary work product, with only a narrow exception tied to the exceptional-circumstances standard for testifying experts.

Can I always get a copy of a statement I gave about the case?

Yes. Paragraph B lets a party obtain their own prior statement without making the special showing the rest of Article 1424 requires.

What has to happen when a party withholds a document as privileged?

The party has to expressly claim the privilege and prepare a privilege log describing the withheld material well enough for the other side to assess the claim, without revealing the protected content.

If I accidentally send over a privileged document, have I waived the privilege?

Not necessarily. If the disclosure was inadvertent and you notify the receiving party reasonably promptly once you learn of it, Paragraph D preserves the privilege.

Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature. Last verified July 30, 2026. · Official source

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