Civil Procedure Keyed to Cound
Upjohn Co. v. United States
ProfessorTodd Berman
CaseCast™ – "What you need to know"
Facts
Petitioner, an international pharmaceutical company discovered through an independent audit that one of its foreign subsidiaries might have made payments to foreign government officials in order to secure government business. Gerard Thomas, Petitioner’s General Counsel, was notified and he consulted with outside counsel as well as Petitioner’s Chairman, all of whom decided an internal investigation as to “questionable payments” was necessary. As a result, questionnaires were sent to all foreign and area managers inquiring as to information regarding any such payments. This procedure of collecting information had been deemed “highly confidential.” Petitioner voluntarily sent a preliminary report to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the IRS. The IRS began an investigation and was given lists by Petitioner of all those who were interviewed and all whom had responded to the questionnaire. The IRS then sought production of all files relative to the investigation conducted under Gerard Thomas’ supervision. The requested production included, but was not limited to the written questionnaires and memoranda or notes of interviews conducted in the US and abroad of officers and employees of Petitioner and its subsidiaries. Petitioner refused, citing attorney-client privilege and attorney work product in anticipation of trial. The Respondent, the United States (Respondent), filed a petition seeking enforcement of the summons in the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan, which was granted. Petitioner then appealed to the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit which rejected the District Court’s finding of waiver of the attorney-client privilege, but agreed that the privilege did not apply to the communications made by officers and agents not responsible for directing Upjohn’s actions in response to legal advice. The Appellate Court remanded to the District Court to determine who was within the control group.
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