Fifty Years After Nixon, Progress on Amending Rule 17(c)

December 11, 2024  |  New York Law Journal

After years of criticism of the overly narrow Nixon standard courts often apply to restrict criminal defendants’ ability to subpoena critical documents from third-parties, welcome change may be coming.  The Advisory Committee on Criminal Rules has made public a preliminary draft amendment of Rule 17(c) that, among other changes, replaces the Nixon test with a more flexible standard.  Unfortunately, the DOJ has voiced strong opposition, and the struggle appears far from over.  In their latest article for the NYLJ, “Fifty Years After Nixon, Progress on Amending Rule 17(c),” Morvillo Abramowitz Grand Iason & Anello partners Robert J. Anello and Richard F. Albert analyze the proposed changes to Rule 17(c) and discuss the issues at stake.  

Fifty Years After Nixon, Progress on Amending Rule 17(c) (pdf | 154.07 KB)