Sparrow v. Vermont Savings Bank
Sparrow v. Vermont Savings Bank
Opinion of the Court
The defendant in the above entitled cause has filed therein a motion asking us to release and return to it certain papers heretofore impounded by our order, and to require the plaintiff’s counsel to surrender a copy of' one of those papers alleged to have been improperly and wrongfully obtained by him. This motion has been duly heard and considered.
At the last November term of this Court, the plaintiff applied for an order to impound certain papers then in the defend
Counsel appeared before the clerk with this list in hand, the sealed package was produced and opened, and counsel checked up the papers called for by the reporter’s list, and copies thereof for the use of plaintiff’s counsel were arranged for. Included in this package was a paper purporting to be a memorandum of testimony taken before a Federal grand jury. This was not included in the reporter’s list, and therefore was not embraced in our order granting the privilege of inspection to plaintiff’s counsel; he was not entitled to see it or have a copy of it. On the contrary, our direction was, in effect, that he should not see it. Nevertheless, by some mistake, he was furnished a copy of this paper by the clerk, and has given a copy of it to Judge Howe, of the Federal Court, and proposes and intends to make use of it in the further prosecution of the suit, though he then knew and now knows, or ought to, that it came to his hands contrary to and in violation of our order.
In these circumstances, it is our plain duty to interfere. This paper was in the hands of the Court, under an order unmistakable in terms, and the plaintiff should not, and will not, be allowed to make use of it or of information gained from it.
It is therefore ordered that the plaintiff’s counsel shall forthwith surrender to this Court the copy of the paper referred to, which he noto has in his possession, and that as soon as may
And it is further ordered that all of the papers not covered by the reporter’s list as aforesaid shall be returned to the defendant or its counsel.
Nothing herein is to prejudice the plaintiff’s rights under his exceptions in the case.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Hiram L. Sparrow, Admr. v. Vermont Savings Bank
- Status
- Published