Reading Room Document

Presidential Immunity from Coercive Congressional Demands for Information

This opinion concluded that both as a result of historical custom and constitutional structure, Congress lacked the power to subject the president to compulsory process. The opinion also rejected the idea that the president should be especially forthcoming with information relating to criminal offenses by government officials, and instead stated that “the need to guarantee the fair trial and other constitutional rights of alleged malefactors” had been cited as reasons for denying Congressional demands for information regarding criminal conduct.

July 24, 1973