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Case 1:20-cr-00330-PAE Document195 Filed 04/05/21 Page3of11
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of due diligence; (3) that the party cannot properly prepare for trial
without such production and inspection in advance of trial and that
the failure to obtain such inspection may tend unreasonably to delay
the trial; and (4) that the application is made in good faith and is not
intended as a general “fishing expedition.”
United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683, 699-700 (1974) (footnote omitted); see United States v.
Skelos, 988 F.3d 645, 661 (2d Cir. 2021) (affirming a decision to quash subpoenas through
application of Nixon); United States v. Pena, No. 15 Cr. 551 (AJN), 2016 WL 8735699, at *1-*2
(S.D.N.Y. Feb. 12, 2016) (applying Nixon, rather than the “more liberal standard” of United States
v. Tucker, 249 F.R.D. 58 (S.D.N.Y. 2008), to the propriety of a Rule 17(c) subpoena).
The Nixon test is demanding. The defendant must establish that the defense’s “application
is made in good faith and is not intended as a general ‘fishing expedition.’” Nixon, 418 U.S. at
700; United States v. Yian, No. 94 Cr. 719 (DLC), 1995 WL 614563, at *2 (S.D.N.Y. Oct. 19,
1995) (quashing subpoena that “call[s] for the production of the entire investigative file and is
accurately described as a fishing expedition”); United States v. Cuthbertson, 630 F.2d 139, 144
(3d Cir. 1980) (“[T]est for enforcement is whether the subpoena constitutes a good faith effort to
obtain identified evidence rather than a general ‘fishing expedition’ that attempts to use the rule as
a discovery device.” (emphasis added)). Indeed, because the Rule poses such a risk of abuse and
misuse, courts are stringent in holding those seeking to obtain documents to Rule 17(c) to their
burden of demonstrating that the documents sought are (1) relevant, (2) admissible, (3) specifically
identified, and (4) not otherwise procurable, and it is “insufficient” for a party to show only that
the subpoenaed documents “are potentially relevant or may be admissible,” United States v. RW
Prof’ Leasing Servs. Corp., 228 F.R.D. 158, 162 (E.D.N.Y 2005) (emphasis added). “[A] mere
hope that the documents, if produced, may contain evidence favorable to the defendant’s case will
not suffice. Rule 17(c) requires a showing that the materials sought are currently admissible in
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Extracted Information
Document Details
| Filename | DOJ-OGR-00002892.jpg |
| File Size | 782.9 KB |
| OCR Confidence | 94.5% |
| Has Readable Text | Yes |
| Text Length | 2,331 characters |
| Indexed | 2026-02-03 16:28:15.714441 |