O sigilo profissional no processo penal: uma proposta de reinterpretação

This paper aims to promote a systematic approach of the legal privilege, taking into consideration not only the professional relationships between lawyer and client, but also doctor-patient, clergy-penitent, etc. After presenting the two main problems from the recent ‘topic-approach’ to the subject, the paper analyses the structure and legal nature of the privilege in the criminal procedure rules. Then, the article offers a way to reinterpret the rationale before the privilege. In this article, the author argues that the central object of protection is the right exercised through the protected professional-trust relationships, in opposition to the argumentation in behalf of the rights of privacy and intimacy. Finally, considerations about the implementation of the exposed criteria are presented.