From yesterday's opinion by Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn (S.D.N.Y.) in Nunes v. NBCUniversal Media, LLC:
The discovery issues before the Court may present questions of first impression. Because the parties did not adequately address these matters, the Court requests additional briefing.
Specifically, the Court seeks supplemental briefing on who is the holder of the constitutional Speech or Debate privilege asserted by counsel for the House Permanent Selection Committee on Intelligence ("HPSCI"). Assuming that the privilege is held only by a Member of Congress, and not a legislative committee, does a Member waive the privilege when he initiates a civil lawsuit about matters protected by the privilege? Alternatively, if the filing of a lawsuit does not constitute a wholesale waiver of the matter at issue, may a Member selectively waive the privilege as to certain relevant matters but not others? …
On March 18, 2021, when Devin G. Nunes, the Plaintiff, was a Member of Congress, NBCU, through a telecast of The Rachel Maddow Show, published a single allegedly defamatory statement: "[Devin Nunes] has refused to hand [the Derkach package] over to the F.B.I." "The Derkach package" refers to a package sent by Andriy Derkach, reportedly a Russian agent who attempted to influence the 2020 U.S. presidential election. According to Nunes, he "did not accept a package from Derkach." Rather, Nunes claims that the "package came to the House Intelligence Committee," and he "immediately turned the package over to the F.B.I."
