[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 15, Volume 1]
[Revised as of January 1, 2002]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 15CFR15.15]

[Page 167]
 
                  TITLE 15--COMMERCE AND FOREIGN TRADE
 
PART 15--LEGAL PROCEEDINGS--Table of Contents
 
  Subpart B--Testimony by Employees and the Production of Documents in 
                            Legal Proceedings
 
Sec. 15.15  Procedures when a Department employee receives a subpoena.

    (a) A Department employee who receives a subpoena shall immediately 
forward the subpoena to the General Counsel, or the appropriate agency 
counsel. In the case of an employee of the Patent and Trademark Office, 
the subpoena shall immediately be forwarded to the Solicitor. The 
General Counsel, or the Solicitor, or appropriate agency counsel will 
determine the extent to which a Department employee will comply with the 
subpoena.
    (b) If an employee is served with a subpoena that the General 
Counsel, or the Solicitor, or appropriate agency counsel determines 
should not be complied with, the General Counsel, Solicitor or 
appropriate agency counsel will attempt to have the subpoena withdrawn 
or modified. If this cannot be done, the General Counsel, Solicitor or 
appropriate agency counsel will attempt to obtain Department of Justice 
representation for the employee and move to have the subpoena modified 
or quashed. If, because of time constraints, this is not possible prior 
to the compliance date specified in the subpoena, the employee should 
appear at the time and place set forth in the subpoena. If legal counsel 
cannot appear on behalf of the employee, the employee should produce a 
copy of the Department's regulations and inform the legal tribunal that 
he/she has been advised by counsel not to provide the requested 
testimony and/or produce documents. If the legal tribunal rules that the 
demand in the subpoena must be complied with, the employee shall 
respectfully decline to comply with the demand. United States ex rel. 
Touhy v. Ragen, 340 U. S. 462 (1951).
    (c) Where the Department employee is an employee of the Office of 
the Inspector General, the Inspector General in consultation with the 
General Counsel, will make a determination under paragraphs (a) and (b) 
of this section.