Kahn

Petitioner Harold Kahn, a tenured professor of history at Stanford University, seeks an extraordinary writ to prevent the taking of his deposition. He claims a privilege founded on the concept of academic freedom. The principal question before us is this: When a university faculty department meets in private to consider an academic appointment or tenure issue, is the candidate entitled to discover the votes cast, the underlying motivation and the comments made during the meeting? Our answer is no, unless the candidate can demonstrate some compelling state or national interest which requires disclosure. Accordingly, having given appropriate notice to both sides, we issue a peremptory writ of mandate. (Palma v. U.S. Industrial Fasteners, Inc. (1984) 36 Cal.3d 171, 177-178 [ 203 Cal.Rptr. 626 , 681 P.2d 893 ]; Code Civ. Proc., § 1088.)

I.

The real party in interest, Ivor Davies, is a citizen of Great Britain, a tenured professor of history at the University of London, and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. He has an international reputation as a scholar and author who specializes in the history of Eastern Europe and of Poland in particular. Among his other…