The U.S. lawyer representing the father of U.S. intelligence leaker Edward Snowden has dropped him as a client after he compromised confidential information in the attorney-client relationship, a news report said Friday.
Lawyer Bruce Fein severed ties with Lon Snowden because the father had revealed private correspondence and conversations to other people, including journalists, that "could jeopardize the legal situation of Edward Snowden," Itar-Tass reported, citing Mattie Fein, Bruce Fein's wife and partner in their law firm.
Bruce Fein, who contributed an op-ed article to The Moscow Times that was published earlier this week, did not immediately reply to an e-mailed request for comment.
It was unclear who would represent Lon Snowden now. The father had planned to make a trip to Moscow to see his son, who last month was granted temporary asylum in Russia for one year. But he called off the visit at the last minute, citing security concerns.
U.S. authorities had sought to extradite Edward Snowden, a former contractor for the U.S. National Security Agency whose interests are represented by Russian lawyer Anatoly Kucherena, to face charges of leaking information about the agency's global electronic surveillance program.
UPDATE: Lon Snowden later denied being dropped by Bruce Fein, saying it was the other way around. Read story.
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