[DOWNLOAD] "National Tank Company v. 30Th Judicial District Court" by Supreme Court Of Utah * eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free

eBook details

Title: National Tank Company v. 30Th Judicial District Court
Author : Supreme Court Of Utah
Release Date : January 07, 1993
Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
Pages : * pages
Size : 96 KB

Description

In this original proceeding we must determine whether accident reports and witness statements prepared by Relator and its insurer following a plant explosion are privileged from discovery. We modify our decision in Flores v. Fourth Court of Appeals, 777 S.W.2d 38, 40-41 (Tex. 1989), to hold that investigative documents are prepared in "anticipation of litigation" for purposes of Tex. R. Civ. P. 166b(3) if a) a reasonable person would have concluded from the totality of the circumstances surrounding the investigation that there was a substantial chance that litigation would ensue; and b) the party resisting discovery believed in good faith that there was a substantial chance that litigation would ensue and conducted the investigation for the purpose of preparing for such litigation. This approach will further the public policy underlying the investigatory privileges without unduly restricting discovery, as these privileges may be overcome where the requesting party demonstrates a substantial need for the materials and undue hardship in obtaining the substantial equivalent of the materials by other means. See Tex. R. Civ. P. 166b(3). Because we today alter the controlling law, we deny mandamus relief without prejudice to allow the trial court to reconsider its ruling in light of todays opinion.