Also known as: prospectively
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An adjective describing something expected or likely to occur in the future or relating to a future time or event. The term identifies persons, relations, or actions oriented toward future occurrences rather than past or present ones.
Peter Park stood among the group of citizens called for jury duty in a federal criminal case. The judge began questioning the group about their backgrounds and views on the charges. Because the judge examined the prospective jurors directly, the attorneys received the opportunity to propose additional questions the court considered proper.
Priscilla Parks consulted a lawyer about forming a business arrangement that would involve falsifying records. After the lawyer explained the limits on assisting with unlawful conduct, Parks insisted on proceeding with the plan. The lawyer declined representation because the prospective client sought to use the services to further a crime.
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Pierce Patterson, a state sheriff, received a federal directive requiring local officers to perform background checks on individuals seeking to purchase handguns. Patterson refused to comply with the command to administer the federal program. The Supreme Court held that the federal government could not require state officers to conduct checks on prospective handgun purchasers.
Philip Powell served on a panel in a federal civil products liability trial. The judge conducted the initial examination of the prospective jurors. After the judge finished, counsel for both sides received the chance to make further inquiry the court deemed proper.
Piper Patel negotiated with a supplier to secure a long-term distribution agreement for her retail chain. A competitor learned of the talks and falsely told the supplier that Patel's company faced imminent insolvency. The competitor became liable for intentionally interfering with Patel's prospective contractual relation.
Prosperity Investments ordered a large quantity of steel under an installment contract with Peak Performance. Peak Performance notified the buyer of an indefinite delay caused by a supply shortage. Prosperity Investments responded in writing that the prospective deficiency substantially impaired the value of the entire contract and canceled the remaining deliveries.
The term applies to any person, relation, or action expected in the future. Primary authorities use it for prospective jurors under the criminal and civil rules, prospective clients under the Model Rules, and prospective contractual relations under the Restatement of Torts.
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A person who consults a lawyer about forming a client-lawyer relationship becomes a prospective client. The lawyer then owes confidentiality duties and may not represent materially adverse clients in the same or substantially related matter if the lawyer received significantly harmful information.
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The principle prevents the federal government from requiring state officers to administer federal programs such as background checks on prospective handgun purchasers. The Supreme Court struck down the Brady Act provisions that imposed those duties on state and local law enforcement.
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…a grand jury inquiry, the filing of a certiorari petition, and certainly the purchase of narcotics by an undercover agent from a prospective defendant may all be equally "critical" yet provision of counsel and advice on that score have never been thought compelled by the Constitution in such cases. The sound reason why this…