Summary

Application under the Evidence (Proceedings in Other Jurisdictions) Act 1975

Facts

This was an application under the Evidence (Proceedings in Other Jurisdictions) Act 1975 pursuant to a letter of request from the US District Court in Delaware. The Delaware proceedings involved allegations of securities fraud in relation to the 1998 $36 billion merger of Chrysler Corporation and Daimler-Benz. The letter of request sought the production of a tape recording of an interview and for the oral examination of a journalist involved in the interview. The Plaintiffs in the Delaware Proceedings sought that evidence in order to be able to prove and rely upon the contents of the interview, in which Juergen Schrempp, CEO of DaimlerChrysler AG, was said to have made important admissions as to his aim and purpose at the time of the merger. The newspaper and journalist opposed production, and the giving of evidence, in respect of the whole interview, and also opposed this in relation to an 'off the record' passage, in the absen

Held

The application was allowed in relation to the 'on the record' parts of the tape recording and interview; in relation to the 'off the record' parts, those were to be disclosed, and could be the subject of examination, only with the consent of the interviewee.