Needless to say, the corporation's attorney should have a role in formulating the position and role of the former employee in the corporation. In all but a few states, the attorneyclient privilege can protect a company's lawyer's communications with former company employees.Tucson attorney Stephen Portell is accusing Pima County Sheriff Mark Napier, above, of reading and sharing privileged emails between Portell and his clients. A company's attorney-client privilege does not shield interviews with former employees, at least according to a state supreme court's divided opinion. Thus, this Court holds that post-employment communications with former employees are not within the scope of the attorney-client privilege. 6 Thus, the consent of the company's lawyer is not ordinarily required in order for opposing counsel to initiate contact with a former em- ployee.