Source: https://www.rcfp.org/privilege-sections/1-relevance-of-material-to-case-at-bar/
Timestamp: 2019-10-19 04:29:12
Document Index: 27483817

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 90', '§ 9', '§ 38', '§ 8', '§22', 'art. 38', '§5', 'art. 39']

1. Relevance of material to case at bar Archives - The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press
The Fourth Circuit’s LaRouche test in civil cases requires a showing that the information sought is “relevant” to the case. LaRouche, 780 F.2d at 1139. This is apparently a looser requirement than in earlier Fourth Circuit conceptions of the privilege, where the moving party was required to show that the information was “crucial to the case” or went “to the heart of the case.” Miller v. Mecklenburg County, 602 F. Supp. 675, 679 (W.D.N.C. 1985), aff’d 813 F.2d 402 (4th Cir. 1986), cert. denied 479 U.S. 1100 (1987), further opinion at 12 Media L. Rep. 1405 (W.D.N.C. 1985). Nevertheless, the relevancy requirement retains some bite. In particular, courts will not force disclosure of information that relates to a case if it is not relevant to the showings required under particular claims. For example, in Penland v. Long, plaintiffs brought a defamation claim against the town sheriff based on a press release which did not mention plaintiffs by name. The district court upheld two reporters’ assertions of privilege concerning their notes from interviews with the sheriff about the press release. The court deemed their notes of minimal relevance because it had already been established that the sheriff was referring to plaintiffs in the release. Penland, 922 F. Supp. 1080, 1084, 24 Media L. Rep. 1410 (W.D.N.C. 1995). Likewise, in Church of Scientology Int’l v. Daniels, because the defendant was willing to stipulate to the accuracy of his allegedly libelous statement, the Fourth Circuit deemed of “questionable” relevance editors’ notes on the meeting at which the statement was made. Church of Scientology, 992 F.2d 1329, 1335, 21 Media L. Rep. 1426 (4th Cir. 1993), cert. denied 510 U.S. 869 (1993).
In both Miller and Selcraig, the Fifth Circuit held that, when the privilege applies, a party must provide substantial evidence that the sought-after information is relevant to overcome the privilege. Miller v. Transamerican Press, Inc., 628 F.2d 932, 932 (5th Cir. 1980); In re Selcraig, 705 F.2d 789, 792 (5th Cir. 1983). Regardless of whether the privilege exists in a particular case, however, the subpoenaing party always bears the burden of demonstrating that the material sought is relevant. United States v. Arditti, 955 F.2d 331, 345 (5th Cir. 1992). Subpoenaed material is considered relevant if it pertains to the charges or claims at issue in the case. Id. In Arditti, the court cited United States v. Nixon to illustrate how one might meet the relevance burden. In Nixon, the prosecutor was able to subpoena the President's audio tapes of conversations because he demonstrated, through the use of sworn testimony of participants in the conversations, that they might contain information relevant to the charges. Arditti, 955 F.2d at 345 (citing United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683, 697-702 (1974)).
To overcome the First Amendment reporter's privilege, the subpoenaed information must go to "the heart" of the case, in other words, it must be centrally relevant to an important legal and factual issue. Southwell v. Southern Poverty Law Ctr., 949 F.Supp. 1303 (W.D. Mich. 1996); see In re Grand Jury Proceedings, 810 F.2d 580 (6th Cir. 1987).
Alaska appellate courts have not had occasion to squarely address the existence or scope of a reporter's privilege. In those trial court proceedings where the qualified constitutional reporter's privilege has been asserted, it has been assumed that to overcome the privilege the subpoenaing party must make a showing that the information sought is crucial to, or goes to the heart of, its case. The shield law, if applicable, likewise requires the applicant for divestiture of the privilege to show why the disclosure is "essential" to the administration of justice, a fair trial in the instant proceeding, or the protection of the public interest.
In criminal cases, the defendant bears the burden of showing “a reasonable possibility the information will materially assist his defense.” Delaney v. Superior Court, 50 Cal. 3d 785, 808, 789 P.2d 934, 268 Cal. Rptr. 753 (1990). If this threshold showing is established, the court should consider the other elements discussed below. If the defendant does not make this threshold showing, the defendant has no right to the reporter’s information. Id. at 808-09; see also People v. Cooper, 53 Cal. 3d 771, 820, 809 P.2d 865, 281 Cal. Rptr. 90 (1991) (California Supreme Court refused to compel a reporter to produce anonymous letter that allegedly described mishandling of a murder investigation, finding “the competency of the investigation … was only tangentially related to the relevant issue of guilt,” and already had been “exhaustively explored”).
Once the defendant has made the threshold showing, the court should balance four factors, one of which is “the importance of the information to the criminal defendant.” See Delaney, 50 Cal. 3d at 811. The California Supreme Court noted in Delaney that “[a] defendant in a given case may be able not only to meet but to exceed the threshold ‘reasonable possibility’ requirement.” Id. “If so, the balance will weigh more heavily in favor of disclosure than if he could show only a reasonable possibility the evidence would assist his defense.” Id.
In civil cases, “disclosure should be denied unless the information goes ‘to the heart of the plaintiff’s claim.’” Mitchell v. Superior Court, 37 Cal. 3d 268, 280, 690 P.2d 625, 208 Cal. Rptr. 152 (1984) (citations omitted). The Court noted that the trial court should evaluate the information sought from this perspective, and only allow discovery of the information that is essential to the claim of the subpoenaing party. Id. at 282.
The information must be relevant and material to unresolved issues that have been raised in the case. § 90.5015(2)(a), Fla. Stat. (2016). A mere possibility that the reporter might have information that might be helpful to the subpoenaing party does not meet the standard of a clear and specific showing on the issue of relevance.
If Hawai'i courts recognize the reporter's privilege, the factor that seems to be most critical in determining whether the privilege applies is the relevance of the information sought from the reporter to the case. The Hawai'i Supreme Court in Goodfader declined to recognize an evidentiary privilege because disclosure of the reporter's confidential sources of information in that case was of overriding importance to the plaintiff in the case.
In DeRoburt, one of the factors considered by the court in determining whether the plaintiff in a defamation case was entitled to disclosure of the reporters' sources was whether disclosure was a "critical element" and went "to the heart" of the plaintiff's case.
In Belanger, the trial court applied the reporters' privilege because the plaintiff failed to demonstrate that the photographs were necessary or critical to his claim.
The Statute specifically states that the party seeking disclosure shall allege that the specific information sought is relevant to the proceedings. 735 ILCS 5/8-904. The court in People v. Pawlaczyk addressed the issue of relevancy, holding that “section 8-904 requires only a showing that the information requested is ‘relevant to the proceedings’ . . . in which the information is sought. 189 Ill.2d at 193, 724 N.E.2d at 911. The court defines “relevant” as a fact that “tends to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence.” Id.; People v. McKee, 2014 IL App (3d) 130696 ¶ 13, 24 N.E.3d 75, 43 Media L. Rep. 1123 (2014).
. For example, in Pawlaczyk, which involved a grand jury proceeding on a potential charge of perjury against city officials, the defendants claimed that since the information sought was not relevant to the libel proceeding in which the defendants allegedly made the perjurious remarks, the privileged information was not relevant. 189 Ill.2d at 192-93. The court concluded that the information must be relevant to the proceeding in which the information is sought, the perjury proceeding in this case, regardless of its relevance to the proceeding in which the perjurious statements were made. Id. at 193-94. Lastly, the court rejected any assertion that the privileged information must be “critically relevant” to the proceedings at issue. Id. at 195.
Applying the standard set forth in Pawlaczyk, the court in Kelley v. Lempesis, No. 13-cv-4922, 2015 WL 4910952 (N.D. Ill. Aug. 17, 2015) found the defendant in a civil suit alleging sexual abuse satisfied the Statute’s “threshold relevance standard for divesting the reporter’s privilege,” where he sought video outtakes from a news story about his alleged conduct that “may tend to make any one of the elements of sexual abuse and battery more or less probable. . . .” Id. at *3. The court rejected broadcaster’s argument that privileged information had to be admissible at trial to qualify as “relevant” for purposes of the Statute. Id. at *4.
On the other hand, in People v. McKee, a criminal prosecution for first degree murder, even though the circuit court acknowledged that “the information being sought was seemingly off topic with regard to the murder charges,” it found the information pertained to whether a “leak” to the reporter violated Illinois law. Reversing the lower court’s divestiture order, the appellate court held “[a]s a matter of statutory construction, relevance to such collateral matters is not sufficient to satisfy section 8–904‘s threshold requirement that the sought-after information be relevant to the proceedings in which it is being sought.” 2014 IL App (3d) 130696 ¶ 14. See also Illinois v. Johnson, 11 Media L. Rep. 1101, 1102 (Ill. Cir. Ct. 1984) (quashing a criminal defendant’s subpoena for materials relating to a WBBM broadcast where relevance and admissibility of reporter’s evidence was questionable).
Some courts have found speculation that a reporter’s testimony “may” “potentially” be relevant is insufficient to abrogate the privilege; a “showing of potential relevance will not suffice.” Neal v. City of Harvey, Illinois, 173 F.R.D. 231, 234, 25 Media L. Rep. 2403 (N.D. Ill. 1997); see also United States v. Lloyd, 71 F. 3d 1256, 1268 (7th Cir. 1995) (affirming lower court’s decision to quash a speculative subpoena); Illinois v. Fort, 15 Media L. Rep. 2251, 2253-54 (Ill. Cir. Ct. 1988) (quashing subpoena served on reporter and news station seeking information defendants believed “may be useful in the cross-examination of anticipated witnesses,” because potential prior inconsistent statements of such witnesses and were not “relevant to the ultimate issues” in the case, nor “essential to protect the public interest implicated”).
The requesting party's need for the information must be substantial before the reporter's constitutional rights will be subordinated. Lamberto, 326 N.W.2d at 308. The requesting party is subject to a "strict showing of necessity [] to avoid fishing expeditions by litigants who . . . seek to use reporters as investigative tools." Id. (citing Silkwood v. Kerr-McGee Corp., 563 F.2d 433, 438 (10th Cir. 1977)).
The party seeking protected news or information must show by clear and convincing evidence that “[t]he news or information is relevant to a significant legal issue before any judicial, legislative, or administrative body, or anybody that has the power to issue subpoenas.” Md. Cts. & Jud. Proc. Code Ann. § 9-112 (d)(1)(i).
Relevance is certainly a factor that is considered in the balancing by a court considering a claim of privilege. See, e.g., In re Roche, 411 N.E.2d 466 (Mass. 1980); Summit Technology, Inc. v. Healthcare Capital Group, Inc., 141 F.R.D. 381 (D. Mass. 1992).
In cases of criminal contempt, the Massachusetts courts have adopted the Federal courts' interpretation of the analogous federal subpoena rule, Fed. R. Crim. P. 17 (c). "[T]he party moving to subpoena documents to be produced before trial must establish good cause, satisfied by showing '(1) that the documents are evidentiary and relevant; (2) that they are not otherwise procurable reasonably in advance of trial by exercise of due diligence; (3) that the party cannot properly prepare for trial without such production and inspection in advance of trial and that the failure to obtain such inspection may tend unreasonably to delay the trial; and (4) that the application [was] made in good faith and is not intended as a general "fishing expedition."'" Commonwealth v. Lam, No. SJC-09322 (MA 5/13/2005) (MA, 2005), citing United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683, 699-700 (1974).
Materiality is required under the Court Rules. Court's will always expect the issuer of the subpoena to demonstrate the relevance of the material sought.
The court in Classics III, 954 S.W.2d at 657, points out that the test of relevancy must go further than the standard for discovery set out in the Missouri Supreme Court Rules, which states that the evidence discovered must be relevant or reasonably likely to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence. That same case cites as persuasive the tests set out in Cervantes v. Time, 464 F.2d 986 (8th Cir., 1972), wherein the court held that the identity of sources should be revealed only if the movant shows concrete evidence that the source will lead to persuasive evidence on a key issue.
And, further, in its analysis of the four-part test, the court in Classics III, 954 S.W.2d at 659, required that a test be made of the strength of the movant's case for libel prior to requiring disclosure.
In theory, the relevance of the material does not matter if it is privileged.
The information to be obtained by a criminal defendant from a news person must be "relevant, material and necessary" to the defense. In addition, it must not be excludable under any other privilege or evidence rule.
Under Rule 11-514, the threshold question is whether the information or the source is “material and relevant to the action.” But relevance is not enough; the information or source must be “crucial.” Rule 11-514(C)(1), (3) NMRA. “Essential” is the standard under the statutory privilege applicable to nonjudicial proceedings. NMSA 1978, § 38-6-7(A), (C) (1973).
The material sought must be "relevant and material to the proper administration of the legal proceeding for which the testimony or production is sought." N.C. Gen. Stat. § 8-53.11(c)(1); see also Higgins v. Young, 29 Media L. Rep. 2528 (N.C. Superior Ct. 2001). In State v. Peterson, 31 Media L. Rep. 2501 (N.C. Superior Ct. 2003), the defendant's attorneys sought notes and other written material from journalists for the stated purpose of determining whether law enforcement officers had testified truthfully to the court about whether they had relayed information about the case to members of the news media. The defendant proposed that the notes be reviewed in camera by the court. In its decision, the court recognized that even in camera review constitutes a significant intrusion into the newsgathering and editorial process, and it quashed the defendant's subpoena, holding that "the mere possibility of finding evidence that the officers did not testify truthfully about their contacts with the news media" was insufficient to overcome the statutory privilege.
Before a defendant in a criminal proceeding is entitled to either a newsperson's confidential information or confidential source, the defendant must first demonstrate to the court that either the newsperson or the confidential source has relevant evidence regarding the defendant's guilt or innocence. The defendant must show that he has exhausted all available means of obtaining the confidential information requested of the newsperson. Further, the defendant must make an effort to examine the newsperson concerning his non-confidential information and must request an in camera inspection by the court of the newsperson's confidential information. If, after these steps are taken, there is direct evidence and reasonable inferences flowing therefrom that there is a reasonable probability that the newsperson or the confidential source will provide relevant evidence of the defendant's guilt or innocence, the defendant is entitled to either the newsperson's confidential information or the name of his confidential source. In re McAuley, 63 Ohio App.2d 5, 408 N.E.2d 97 (Ct. App. Cuyahoga Co. 1979)
The material sought must be highly relevant, that, is, go to the heart of the case of the party seeking the information. In Taylor v. Miskovsky, the information sought by the plaintiff in a defamation case was from a reporter who researched and wrote articles about the plaintiff after the publication of the articles written by another reporter that were at issue in the suit. The court concluded that what the second reporter found could not be relevant to the issues in the case over the earlier articles.
In the civil context, the subpoenaing party must make a clear and specific showing that the information, document, or item is relevant and material to the proper administration of the official proceeding for which the testimony, production, or disclosure is sought and is essential to the maintenance of a claim or defense of the person seeking the testimony, production, or disclosure. Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §22.024(6).
In the criminal context, the subpoenaing party must make a clear and specific showing that the information, document, or item “is relevant and material to the proper administration of the official proceeding for which the testimony, production, or disclosure is sought and is essential to the maintenance of a claim or defense of the person seeking the testimony, production or disclosure, or is central to the investigation or prosecution of a criminal case and based on something other than the testimony of the requestor, reasonable grounds exist to believe a crime has occurred.” Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 38.11, §5(a) (internal parentheses omitted).
Pre-statute case law addressing the relevance factor in applying the reporter's privilege, looked at the relationship between what the materials or information sought was likely to contain and what the material issues in the case were for the party that was seeking the information through subpoena. If the material or information sought by subpoena were not likely to pertain to the issues of the subpoenaing party, then the material or information were generally found to be not highly material and relevant.
Additionally, Texas rules of both civil and criminal procedure also contain requirements of relevancy. Under the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, a party is entitled to conduct discovery only to the extent “reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence.” Tex. R. Civ. Proc. 192.3. This rule also applies to criminal proceedings pursuant to Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, article 39.04. See also Coleman v. State, 966 S.W.2d 525 (Tex. Crim. App. 1998). Furthermore, the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure requires that any subpoena issued in a criminal case must constitute or contain evidence material to any matter involved in the action and that, when applying for a subpoena, the applicant must state that the information sought is material to the case. Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 39.14 and 24.03.
The Advisory Committee Note to Rule 509 states that in determining whether the need for the information outweighs the interest of a continued free flow of information to news reporters, the court should consider the factors set forth in Silkwood v. Kerr-McGee Corp., 563 F.2d 433 (10th Cir. 1977). Utah R. Evid. 509 advisory committee note (1998). In that case, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit held that litigants seeking evidence or testimony from a reporter through a subpoena had to demonstrate that the information sought was "of certain relevance" to the case. Silkwood, 563 F.2d at 438. A magistrate judge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah quashed a subpoena of two reporters in part because the party seeking the reporters' testimony had failed to demonstrate certain relevance. Bottomly v. Leucadia Nat'l Corp., 24 Med. L. Rep. 2118, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 14760 (D. Utah July 2, 1996). Instead, the magistrate judge concluded, the reporters' testimony had only been shown to be potentially logically probative but likely peripheral.
A related requirement expounded by the Tenth Circuit in Silkwood is that the information sought must “go[] to the heart of the matter.” Silkwood, 563 F.2d at 438. The U.S. District Court for the District of Utah described this requirement as “central or core to the litigation.” Bottomly, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS at *7. A Utah trial court ruled that, in civil cases at least, litigants must demonstrate a “critical need” for information in order to overcome the reporter's privilege. Lester v. Draper, No. 000906048 (Utah 3d Dist. Ct. Jan. 16, 2002).
The first prong of the three-part test is that the information sought must be relevant to the case at issue, and some cases hold that the relevance standard is higher than the relevance standard for discovery in general. Church of Scientology Int’l v. Daniels, 992 F.2d 1329 (4th Cir. 1993) (noting that plaintiff in a defamation case had failed to show the relevance of materials sought in discovery where the defendant had offered a stipulation and stating, “the consideration that Daniels offered to stipulate to the accuracy of the quotation that appeared in USA Today makes the relevance of the materials CSI seeks questionable, rather than critical to the case, as the law requires”); Hatfill v. N.Y. Times Co., 242 F.R.D. 353 (E.D. Va. 2006) (“The standard for relevance under LaRouche is higher than the standard under Rule 26. Under LaRouche, the information must be actually relevant.”); see also Commonwealth v. Townley, 46 Med. L. Rptr. 1294 (Va. Cir. Ct. 2018) (quashing subpoena for unaired material relating to statements made by the alleged victim in a criminal case where the defendant could not show that the information was material).
Under the common law, the party seeking to compel compliance with the subpoena must show that "the information sought [is] necessary or critical to the cause of action or the defense pleaded." Senear, 97 Wn. 2d at 155 (confidential source case).
Section 2(b)(1) of the shield statute, which involves the conditional privilege for non-confidential journalist work product, requires the proponent of disclosure to prove that the "news or information is highly material and relevant" and "critical or necessary to the maintenance of a party's claim, defense, or proof of an issue material thereto," and finally that, in a civil action, "there is a prima facie cause of action" and, in a criminal action, "there are reasonable grounds to believe that a crime has occurred." See RCW 5.68.010(2)(b)(1).
The subpoenaing party must meet the very high and difficult burden of proving that the information subpoenaed is "highly material and relevant" and "necessary or critical" to the maintenance of the subpoenaing party's claim or defense. Ranson, 488 S.E.2d 5; Hudok, 389 S.E.2d 188.