Handgards, Inc. v. Johnson & Johnson

ORDER

This is an antitrust action in which plaintiff claims that defendants have attempted to monopolize the disposable plastic glove industry. On February 11, 1975, plaintiff moved, pursuant to Rule 37 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, to compel defendants to produce certain documents which defendants claimed were protected from disclosure under the attorney-client privilege. 1 By Memorandum Opinion and Order of April 16, 1975, defendants were ordered to submit the contested documents to the Court for an in camera inspection. Defendants complied by submitting the documents listed on defendants’ Schedule B.

The documents submitted for inspection are letters and other communications transmitted among and between defendants’ counsel and other company officials. For the most part, the documents relate to the negotiation and interpretation of various provisions in license agreements pertaining to foreign patents in the disposable plastic glove field, including the Orsini patent relevant to the instant case. Other documents contain evaluations, or requests for evaluations, of the legal sufficiency of foreign patents and the possible infringement of those patents by defendants…