Swidler & Berlin v. United States

During the Office of Independent Counsel's investigation into the White House travel-office firings, deputy White House counsel Vincent Foster met with attorney James Hamilton of Swidler & Berlin (defendant) to seek legal advice about the investigation; Hamilton's notes from that meeting began with the word "Privileged." Nine days later, Foster died by suicide, and a federal grand jury subpoenaed Swidler & Berlin for Hamilton's notes. The firm moved to quash on attorney-client privilege grounds; the district court denied enforcement of the subpoenas, but the D.C. Circuit reversed, finding a posthumous exception for communications of substantial importance to criminal litigation, and the firm petitioned for certiorari.