ML19309D191
| ML19309D191 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Comanche Peak, South Texas  |
| Issue date: | 04/04/1980 |
| From: | Blume M, Hodgdon A NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE LEGAL DIRECTOR (OELD) |
| To: | NRC ATOMIC SAFETY & LICENSING APPEAL PANEL (ASLAP) |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 8004100126 | |
| Download: ML19309D191 (6) | |
Text
_ - _ _
T UNITED STATES OF AMERICA NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION i
BEFORE THE ATOMIC SAFETY AND LICENSING APPEAL BOARD In the Matter of
)
)
HOUSTON LIGHTING & POWER COMPANY
) NRC Docket Nos. 50-498A PUBLIC SERVICE BOARD OF SAN ANTONIO
)
50-499A CITY OF AUSTIN
)
CENTRAL POWER AND LIGHT COMPANY
)
(South Texas Project, Unit Nos.
)
1 and 2)
)
)
TEXAS UTILITIES GENERATING
) NRC Docket Nos. 50-445A COMPANY, et al.
)
50-446A (Comanche Peak Steam Electric
)
Station, Units ! and 2)
)
NRC STAFF'S MEMORANDUM IN RESPONSE TO THE APPEAL BOARD'S ORDER OF MARCH 28, 1980 On March 27, 1980 this Board heard oral argument on the certified question raised by t'.e Licensing Board ruling requiring the production of certain
" settlement" documents on the joint motion of the Department of Justice and the NRC Staff.
By Order of March 28, this Board requested the parties to submit additional authority on the issue of "whether the law governing discovery generally recognizes the existence of any ' settlement privilege.'" Staff respectfully submits this memorandum in response to the Board's request.
Staff has not been able to identify any authority dealing directly with the question posed in the Board's Order of March 28, 1980: whether the courts do or ought to recognize the existence of a privilege preventing discovery of documents because of a relationship between those documents and the settlement process.
However, by considering the way in which the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP) and the Federal Rules of Evidence (FRE) deal with the separate questions of discovery, admissibility, and privilege, we con-clude that there exists no privilege which would insulate from discovery documents developed in the context of settlement.
8004100126
, O Rule 26(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provides, in part, that
" parties may obtain discovery regarding any matter, not privileged...." The authorities. support the proposition that a determination of privilege for discovery purposes requires reference to the Federal Rules of Evidence, specifically Rule 501. See 4 MOORE, FEDERAL PRACTICE, Para. 26.60(1); Oliver
- v. Committee for Re-election of the President, 66 FRD 553 (D.C. D.C.1975).
TU, Houston and CSW argue that FRE 408 creates a privilege for documents related to the settlement process.
The courts, however, recognize a dis-tinction between the issues raised in connection with the application of Federal Rule of Evidence 408, on the one hand, and the existence of a privilege as enunciated in Federal Rule of' Evidence 501 on the other.
In Oliver, supra, for example, the court noted that:
While offers of settlement (and presumably also negotiations which led to such offers) are clearly not admissible at trial'. for a num-ber of public policy reasons such negotiations do not fall within the confines of the privileges recognized at common law.
In a different context, the court in In re Special Nov.1975 Grand Jury, 443 F. Supp.
1094 (U.D.111.1977), dealt with an argunent that FRE 408 protected certain information from disclosure to a grand jury.
The court concluded that FRE 408 did not prevent revelation of the " settlement materials," despite the fact that FRE 1101(d)(2) makes the rule with respect to privileges applicable to grand jury pro-ceedings.
emar -
...Q
3-
.o For the above reasons, the Staff ' submits.that the courts do not recognize-the existence of a privilege preventing discovery of documents generated in the sett,lement process.
Respectfully submitted, k ':_^ -
Jc:eph Rutberg Michael B. Blume Director-& Chief Counsel Counsel for NRC Staff Antitrust Division Office of the Executive Legal Director j
WAA-to q
Ann P. Hodgdon Counsel for NRC Staff Dated at Bethesda, ' Maryland this 4th day of April 1980.
6
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 9
hUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION BEFORE THE ATOMIC SAFETY AN9 LICENSING APPEAL BOARD In the Matter of
)
)
HOUSTON LIGH7ING & POWER COMPANY
)
NRC Docket Nos. 50-498A PUBLIC SERVICE BOARD OF SAN ANTONIO )
50-499A CITY OF AUSTIN
)
CENTRAL POWER AND LIGHT COMPANY
)
(South Texas Project Unit Nos.
)
1 and 2)
)
)
TEXAS UTILITIES GENERATING
)
NRC Docket Nos. 50-445A COMPANY, et al.
)
50-446A (Comanche Peak Steam Electric
)
Station Units 1 and 2)
)
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that copies of NRC STAFF'S MEMORANDUM IN RESPONSE TO THE AFPEAL BOARD'S ORDER OF MARCH 28, 1980 in the above-captioned proceeding have been served on the following by deposit in the United States mail, first class, or, as indicated by an asterisk, through deposit in the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's internal mail system, this 4th day of April 1980:
Robert Fabrikant, Esq.
Marshall E. Miller, Esq., Chainaan Donald A. Kaplan, Esq.
Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Panel Susan B. Cyphert U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Nancy A. Luque Washington, D. C.
20555 Frederick H. Parmenter, Esq.
David A. Dopsovic, Esq.
Michael L. Glaser, Esq.
P. O. Box 14141 1150 Seventeenth Street, N.W.
Washington, D. C.
20044 Washington, D. C.
20036 Mr. William C. Price Sheldon J. Wol fe, Esq.
Central Power & Light Co.
Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Panel P. O. Box 2121 U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Corpus Christi, Texas 78403 Washington, D. C.
20555 G. W. Oprea, Jr.
Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Executive Vice President U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Houston Lighting & Power Company Washington, D. C.
20555 P. O. Box 1700 Houston.. Texas 77001 Docketing and Service Section Office of the Secretary Robert E. Bathen U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission R. W. Beck & Associates Washington, D. C.
20555 P. O. Box 6817 Orlando. Florida 32803
-R.
L. Hancock, Director City of Austin Electric Utility Somervell County Public Library l
P. O. Box 1088 P. O. Box 417 Austin, Texas 78767.
- Glen Rose, Texas 76043 Le-um.
-w---_
R. Gordon Gooch, Esq.
Robert Lowenstein, Esq.
John P. Mathis, Esq.
J. A. Bouknight, ESq.
Steven R. Hunsicker, Esq.
William J. Franklin, Esq.
Baker & Botts Peter G. Flynn, Esq.
Suite 300 Douglas G. Green, Esq.
1701 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Lowenstein, Newman, Reis, Axelrad Washington,~D. C.
20006
& Toll 1025 Connecticut Avenue, N.W.
J. K. Spruce, General Manager Washington, D.C.
20036 City Public Service Board P. O. Box 1771 Jerry L. Harris San Antonio, Texas 78203 Richard C. Balough Dan H. Davidson, City Manager Robert C. McDiarmid, Esq.
City of Austin Robert A. Jablon, Esq.
P. O. Box 1088 George Spiegel, Esq.
Austin, Texas 78767 David A. Giacalone, Esq.
Marc R. Poirier, Esq.
Jerome Saltzman, Chief Spiegel & McDiarmid Antitrust & Indemnity Group 2600 Virginia Avenue, N.W.
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, D.C.
20037 Washington, D. C.
20555 Jon C. Wood, Esq.
Jay Galt, Esq.
W. Roger Wilson, Esq.
Jack P. Fite, Esq.
Matthews, Nowlin, Macfarlane Looney, Nichols, Johnson & Hayes
& Barrett 219 Couch Drive 1:00 Alamo National Building Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73102 San Antonio, Texas 78205 Merlyn D. Sampels, Esq.
Mr. W. N. Woolsey Jos. Irion Worsham, Esq.
Kleberg, Dyer, Redford & Weil Spencer C. Relyea, Esq.
1030 Petroleum Tower Worsham, Forsythe & Sampels Corpus Christi, Texas 78474 2001 Bryan Tower, Suite 2500 Dallas, Texas 75201 Dick Terrell Brown, Esq.
800 Milam Building Morgan Hunter, Esq.
San Antonio, Texas 78205 McGinnis, Lochridge & Kilgore Fifth Floor, Texas State Bank Building E. William Barnett, Esq.
900 Congress Avenue Charles G. Thrash, Jr., Esq.
Austin, Texas 78701 Helbert D. Schwarz, Esq.
Theodore F. Weiss, Esq.
Joseph B. Knotts, Esq.
J. Gregory Copeland, Esq.
Nicholas S. Reynolds, Esq.
Baker & Botts C. Dennis Ahearn, Esq.
3000 One Shell Plaza Debevoise & Liberman Houston, Texas 77002 1200 Seventeenth Street, N.W.
asMngton, E N
Alan S. Rosenthal, Chairman Atomic Safety and Licensing Appeal Michael C. Farrar, Esq.
Saf ty and Licensing Appeal U
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, D.C.
20555
- U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Thomas S. Moore, Esq.
Washington, D.C.
20555 l
Atomic Safety and Licensing Appeal Board U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, D.C.
20555
- -.-w/
m,,.
- s Douglas F. John, Esq.
Donald M. Clements, Esq.
McDermott, Will and Emery Gulf States Utilities Company 1101 Connecticut Avenue, N.W.
P. O. Box 2951 Suite 1201 Beaumont, Texas 77704 Washington, D. C.
20036 Robert M. Rader, Esq.
Don R. Butlir, Esq.
Conner, Moore & Corber 1225 South West Towers 1747 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Austin, Texas 78701 Washington, D.C.
20006 John W. Davidson, Esq.
Sawtelle, Goode, Davidson & Troilo Mr. G. Holman King West Texas Utilities Co.
1100 San Antonio Savings Building San Antonio, Texas 78205 P. O. Box 841 Abilene, Texas 79604 Linda Aaker Attorney General's Office State of Texas P. O. Box 12548 Austin, Texas 78711 James E. Monahan Executive Vice President and General Manager Brazos Electric Power Cooperative, Inc.
P. O. Box 6296 Waco, Texas 76706 Frederick H. Ritts, Esq.
William H. Burchette, Esq.
Law Offices of Northcutt Ely Watergate 600 Building Washington, D. C.
20037 g
i Michael I. Miller, Esq.
Ann P. Hodgdon (j
James A. Carney, Esq.
Counsel ~for NRC Staff Sarah N. Welling, Esq.
Isham, Lincoln & Beale 4200 One First National Plaza Chicago, Illinois 60603 David M. Stahl, Esq.
Isham, Lincoln & Beale Suite 325 ll20. Connecticut Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D. C.
20036 Maynard Human, General Manager Western Farmers Electric Cooperative P. O. Box 429 Anadarko, Oklahoma 73005