Raymond Randall Is an Attorney with the Federal Trade Commission

question 104

Essay

Raymond Randall is an attorney with the Federal Trade Commission. A 19-year veteran with the agency, Mr. Randall was known as a good trial attorney. The FTC charged William Farley, the chairman of Fruit of the Loom, Inc., with violations of the reporting provisions of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, when he purchased shares of West Point-Pepperell Corporations prior to a Fruit of the Loom takeover bid. The Hart-Scott-Rodino Act requires investors to notify the government when their holdings in a firm pass $15 million. The FTC sought a fine of $10,000 per day against Mr. Farley, for a total of $910,000. Mr. Farley did notify the FTC once Fruit of the Loom made its decision to acquire West Point-Pepperell. Randall was assigned the Farley case. The FTC took a position of refusing to disclose to Farley and his attorneys documents relating to the case. Mr. Randall felt that the documents pointed to weaknesses in the FTC case and supported Mr. Farley's point that he notified the FTC once the takeover position was announced. Mr. Randall leaked the documents to Mr. Farley's lawyer. Mr. Farley's lawyers were concerned that they should not be in possession of government documents returned the documents and resigned from the case because they had seen the documents. Mr. Farley's new attorneys went to court demanding production of the documents. The documents were ordered produced by the court. When the FTC refused to produce them, the case against Mr. Farley was dismissed by a federal district judge.
a.Did Mr. Randall do the right thing in disclosing the documents to Farley's attorneys?
b.Did Mr. Farley's lawyers do the right thing in returning the documents to the FTC?

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Definitions:

Admission of Fact

The acknowledgment and acceptance of a fact as true, often in the context of legal proceedings.

U.S. District Courts

Federal courts that serve as the trial-level courts in the United States federal court system, handling both civil and criminal cases.

Trial Courts

The courts where cases are first heard, involving the presentation of evidence and legal arguments to a judge or jury.

Federal Court System

The three-tiered judicial system of the United States consisting of district courts, appellate courts, and the Supreme Court, which interprets and applies federal laws and Constitution.