In re Ex Parte Application of Eshelman for a Section 1782 Subpoena

After reading articles reporting that Frederic Eshelman, a North Carolina health case magnate, procured the arrest and prosecution of hunters who “corner-crossed” his Wyoming hunting preserve to get from one parcel of public land to another, an anonymous American emailed several of Eshelman’s business associates, at least one of who is abroad, suggesting that they reconsider doing business with someone who “abused police resources.” Claiming that he wanted to file defamation suits in foreign countries, Eshelman invoked 28 U.S.C. § 1782 to secure a subpoena compelling Google to identify the person who sent the email. Representing the anonymous person and co-counseling with the ACLU, we moved to quash the subpoena, invoking the Dendrite test and arguing that section 1782 cannot be used in the circumstances of this case.