United States v. Nixon

After the Watergate break-in during President Nixon's 1972 reelection campaign, Special Prosecutor Leon Jaworski (plaintiff) obtained a subpoena compelling President Nixon (defendant) to produce tapes and documents relevant to the indicted Watergate defendants and to the President himself. Nixon turned over some partially edited materials, then moved to quash the subpoena in district court, arguing executive communications are absolutely privileged from judicial discovery; the district court denied the motion, and both sides appealed directly to the Supreme Court.