Attorney's work product is a term used in American civil procedure to describe documents developed by one party's attorney in preparation for or anticipation of a lawsuit. Such documents can not be obtained by opposing parties through the legal discovery process, except under exceptional circumstances delineated by the United States Supreme Court in a series of decisions. Civil procedure is the written set of rules that sets out the process that courts will follow when hearing cases of a civil nature (a civil action). These rules explain how a lawsuit must be commenced, what kind of service of process is required, the types of pleadings, motions, and... An attorney is someone who represents someone else in the transaction of business: For attorney-at-law, see lawyer, solicitor, barrister or civil law notary. ... A lawsuit is a civil action brought before a court in which the party commencing the action, the plaintiff, seeks a legal remedy. ... The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C., (large image) The Supreme Court of the United States, located in Washington, D.C., is the highest court (see supreme court) in the United States; that is, it has ultimate judicial authority within the United States...

This doctrine does not apply in other countries, where the legal discovery process itself is much more limited.