Rubin

This case presents an issue of first impression concerning the power of the trial court to create a nonstatutory, local state secrets privilege that functions as a special defense to bar or abate an action under Code of Civil Procedure section 597.

For the reasons that follow, we shall find that the trial court improperly dismissed the action under Code of Civil Procedure section 597 on the basis of defendants’ first affirmative defense of a nonstatutory local state secrets privilege. We shall conclude that the court’s other rulings based upon the erroneous upholding of defendants’ first affirmative defense—namely, the denial of plaintiffs’ motion to compel answers to interrogatories and the granting of defendants’ motion for a protective order against further discovery—were also improper. Accordingly, we shall reverse the judgment and remand the case for the trial court to reconsider plaintiffs’ motion to compel responses to interrogatories.

The plaintiffs are the Jewish Defense League, Inc. the Jewish Defense League (JDL), and Irving David Rubin, an officer and west coast executive director of the JDL.

The defendants are the City of Los Angeles (City), Daryl Gates in…