Tom C. Clark

“ The rule has always been to the contrary. It seems to me that proper judicial administration would require that the Court expressly overrule Goldman v. United States, 1942, 316 U.S. 129, 132, 62 S.Ct. 993, 995, 86 L.Ed. 1322, which is contra to the rule announced today. But that is not done. That case is left on the books to haunt lawyers and trial courts in their search for the proper rule. ”

“ For over eight score years now our federal judicial administration has gotten along without it and today that administration enjoys the highest rank in the world.
Director J. Edgar Hoover back in 1950 tellingly pointed this out before a Subcommittee of the Committee on Foreign Relations of the United States Senate. Among other things he said, 'I have always maintained the view that if we were to fully discharge the serious responsibilities imposed upon us, the confidential character of our files must be inviolate. ”

“ In Goldman the Court was unanimous on the issue of disclosure of documents [1] and refused to order produced 'notes and memoranda made by the (federal) agents during the investigation.' The rule announced today has no support in any of our cases. [2] Every federal judge and every lawyer of federal experience knows that it is not the present rule. Even the defense attorneys did not have the temerity to ask for such a sweeping decision. They only asked that the documents be delivered to the judge for his determination of whether the defendant should be permitted to examine them. ”