Opinion ID: 747683
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Item Six: Mr. Tsai's Declarations on Behalf of any Defendants

Text: 44 In support of their motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, the Taiwan defendants submitted several declarations. The purpose of those declarations was to provide a factual foundation for the court's ruling as to whether it had subject matter jurisdiction under the FSIA. In item six of the seven topics listed by the district court, the court ordered Mr. Tsai to testify about matters specifically referred to in each and every one of the declarations filed on behalf of any of the defendants by Mr. Tsai. 45 Despite the fact that Tsai's testimonial immunity protects him from being compelled to testify about the matters referred to in the declarations, item six differs in crucial ways from the other topics listed in the district court order. First, the Taiwan defendants voluntarily submitted the information in the declarations, whereas they did not volunteer to address the other topics. Moreover, the district court has a compelling reason to seek Tsai's testimony about the matters referred to in the declarations, because the court must ascertain whether the Taiwan defendants are immune from jurisdiction under the FSIA, and the declarations include factual allegations relevant to that jurisdictional issue. Therefore, we hold that Mr. Tsai must make himself available for deposition to be questioned about the matters referred to in the declarations. 46 Of course, as already indicated, Mr. Tsai has the right to refuse to answer any question that would reveal information he possesses solely by virtue of his official position. However, his refusal to answer questions about the matters referred to in the declarations should cause the district court to strike the pertinent parts of his declarations or his declaration in its entirety.