Nesse v. Pittman

206 F.R.D. 325, 2002 WL 575988
CourtDistrict Court, District of Columbia
DecidedApril 16, 2002
DocketNo. 99-3081 (GK/JMF)
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 206 F.R.D. 325 (Nesse v. Pittman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, District of Columbia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Nesse v. Pittman, 206 F.R.D. 325, 2002 WL 575988 (D.D.C. 2002).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

FACCIOLA, United States Magistrate Judge.

On September 18, 2001, I issued a Memorandum Opinion and Order in which I granted in part and denied in part plaintiffs motion to compel production of a variety of documents. Nesse v. Shaw Pittman, 202 F.R.D. 344 (D.D.C.2001). I reserved judgment on one set of documents, a series of notes taken by Barbara Rossotti (“Rossotti”), a partner and member of Shaw Pittman’s Management Committee, pending an eviden[327]*327tiary hearing on the applicability of the work-product and attorney-client privileges. That hearing has now been held and yielded additional facts, noted below, concerning the creation of the documents at issue.

BACKGROUND

In the fall of 1998, at the same time that the underlying events leading to this lawsuit were occurring, Shaw Pittman was in the process of substantially revising its retirement policy. In September 1998, the partners preliminarily voted to revise their partnership agreement so that partners reaching the age of 65 would be routinely transferred to senior counsel status, barring extraordinary circumstances. Tr.1 at 31, 42-43. The shift to senior counsel would be accompanied by a substantial reduction in compensation. Tr. at 33. This retirement policy was further discussed throughout the fall of 1998 and became effective January 1, 1999. R. Kenley Webster (“Webster”) was 66 at the time and thus was directly affected by the new policy. Learning of the decision to shift him to senior status and reduce his draw, Webster protested to the managing partner, Paul Mickey (“Mickey”), and sought an opportunity to plead his case before the Management Committee. Tr. at 45-46. Rather than convening the entire Management Committee, Mickey decided to establish a “task force” composed of partners Rossotti and Steven Huttler (“Huttler”) to hear Webster’s appeal. Tr. at 47, 58.

Rossotti took the notes at issue in this dispute during a series of meetings held between October 23, 1998, and November 5, 1998.

Philip Harvey (“Harvey”), Shaw Pittman’s general counsel, was responsible for investigating Webster’s role in a the potential lawsuit then brewing because of the manner in which Shaw Pittman withdrew from its representation of a client named Shirley Blair. Tr. at 41.2 On October 14, Harvey began gathering information on what had occurred. Tr. at 6-7. In the course of this investigation, Harvey spoke to various Shaw Pittman attorneys involved in the Blair matter, including Webster. Opposition to Plaintiff’s Motion to Compel Production of Documents at 14. On October 23, Harvey briefed the entire Management Committee on the Blair matter. Harvey also reported to Mickey, Rossotti, and Huttler on October 29. Tr. at 48. On November 2, Mickey, Rossotti, and Huttler met with Webster. Tr. at 48-49. 'The same individuals, sans Mickey, convened again later that same day for another discussion. Tr. at 100. Lastly, Rossotti and Mickey met once more on November 5.

Rossotti’s notes from the October 23rd meeting bear the headings “re RKW” and “[RKW].” Pis. Exh. 2. The unredacted portions of the notes indicate that the Committee discussed Webster’s past performance with respect to his joint representation of three individuals who were being investigated by the United States Department of Justice. Id. Webster had advocated to continue representing all three, but Harvey had advised against it based on ethical concerns. Tr. at 16-19.

Rossotti’s notes from the October 29th meeting that included herself, Harvey and Huttler indicate that the discussion of the Blair matter came in the midst of a discussion of Webster’s performance on other matters. After the section detailing the discussion of Blair, the notes then return to Webster’s behavior in a non-Blair matter, although it appears that Harvey was not present at this final stage of the meeting. Tr. at 24. Harvey testified that his presence at the October 29th meeting was for the dual purposes of assisting his partners in making a personnel decision regarding Webster and also informing the Management Committee concerning the Blair matter. Tr. at 35.

Rossotti took just over four pages of notes during the first November 2nd meeting with Huttler, Mickey, and Webster. The first three pages deal exclusively with Webster’s conduct in non-Blair matters. PI. Exh. 4. Page four, which has been withheld and included in the privilege log, contains one para[328]*328graph regarding Webster’s role in the Blair matter. SP000102. Mickey and Rossotti both testified that Mickey essentially summarized information that had been conveyed to him by Harvey. Tr. at 86, 99. The notes suggest that, at some point during Mickey’s summary, Webster interjected and offered his version of what had occurred. SP000102.

The second meeting on November 2 involved Huttler, Rossotti, and Webster. Tr. at 100. The heading of Rossotti’s notes from this second meeting is “re: rkw.” PL Exh. 12. Rossotti took nine pages of notes during this meeting, six of which were produced and three of which were withheld. These three withheld pages detail a discussion of the Blair matter, but this time Webster himself provided all of the information about the topic. Tr. at 100. Following this meeting, Rossotti conveyed to Mickey what she had learned from Webster, with the understanding that Mickey would then pass the information along to Harvey. Tr. at 101.

Finally, on November 5, Rossotti took a half-page of notes from a discussion with Mickey regarding the Blair matter. The notes indicate that the source of Mickey’s information was Harvey, meaning that it was based on what Harvey learned from the lawyers (including Webster) who had handled the Blair matter.

DISCUSSION

Shaw Pittman claims that Rossotti’s notes are protected by both the attorney-client and work-product privileges. After reviewing the testimony at the evidentiary hearing, the parties’ respective briefs, and the notes themselves, I conclude that most of the notes are covered by the attorney-client privilege. The notes from one meeting, however, are not covered by either privilege and I shall order them produced.

Attorney-Client Privilege

As frequently occurs when a member of a corporation has been accused of wrongdoing, Shaw Pittman asked its general counsel to conduct an internal investigation. See, e.g., Upjohn Co. v. United States, 449 U.S. 383, 101 S.Ct. 677, 66 L.Ed.2d 584 (1981); Some of the results of this investigation were later captured in Rossotti’s notes from various meetings. In assessing the applicability of the attorney-client privilege to Rossotti’s notes, it helps to pinpoint the roles of the key individuals who were involved in the various communications. In addition, because the privilege applies to particular _ communications,3 I shall trace the applicability of the privilege through a complex series of communications, from the point of origin at Webster’s and other lawyers’ lips to the moment when the ink met the paper on Rossotti’s note pad.

The attorney-client privilege protects confidential communications made by the client to an attorney for the purpose of seeking legal advice. Tax Analysts v. Internal Revenue Service, 117 F.3d 607, 617 (D.C.Cir. 1997).

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
206 F.R.D. 325, 2002 WL 575988, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/nesse-v-pittman-dcd-2002.