Commodity Futures Trading Commission v. Weintraub
United States Supreme Court
471 U.S. 343, 105 S. Ct. 1986, 85 L. Ed. 372 (1985)
- Written by Philip Glass, JD
Facts
Chicago Discount Commodity Brokers (CDCB) (debtor) entered Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings and appointed a trustee to whom passed business operational authority and responsibility for the estate. The trustee’s duties to CDCB included maximizing estate value, which would require investigating financial malfeasance and initiating causes of action. During bankruptcy proceedings, CDCB came under investigation by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (commission) for alleged customer-fund misappropriations. The committee subpoenaed Gary Weintraub, CDCB’s previous counsel. Weintraub invoked the attorney-client privilege, leading the trustee to seek to waive the privilege. CDCB objected, contending that the ability to waive the privilege was vested in the directors and officers of CDCB. CDCB worried that invoking the privilege would prioritize CDCB’s creditors over shareholders and constrain prospective attorney-client communications. The United States Supreme Court heard this appeal.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Marshall, J.)
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