Major Issue: Whether Speech or Debate Clause immunizes the Speaker of the House of Representatives and members of a committee from suits arising from the committee’s investigation and subsequent subpoenas.

Case Status: Complete.

Case Description: On February 23, 2022, the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol issued a subpoena to Salesforce.com requesting production of documents and deposition testimony.  The Select Committee sought information regarding whether and how the Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee (RNC) used Salesforce services to disseminate false statements about the 2020 election. 

On March 9, 2022, the RNC sued Speaker Pelosi and the Select Committee and its members to challenge the subpoena.  On March 15, the RNC amended its complaint to include Salesforce as a defendant and simultaneously filed a motion for preliminary injunction to prevent Salesforce’s production of materials and deposition testimony.

The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia held on May 1, 2022 that the Speech or Debate Clause of the U.S. Constitution barred the RNC’s claims against the congressional defendants.  The Court also found the RNC had standing to sue Salesforce, dismissed as moot one of the RNC’s claims, entered judgment against the RNC on the rest of its claims against Salesforce, and entered an administrative injunction to give the RNC time to seek an injunction pending appeal.  The RNC filed notice of appeal and moved for such an injunction on May 4, 2022.  On May 20, 2022, the D.C. District Court denied the motion for injunction pending appeal but granted a brief administrative injunction so the RNC could request the same relief from the D.C. Circuit Court.  On September 2, 2022, the parties consented to dismissal of the case upon withdrawal of the subpoena.

Procedural Posture: The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and Judge Timothy J. Kelly was assigned to the case.  On May 1, 2022, the Court granted the defendants’ motions to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction and for summary judgment.  Notice of the RNC’s appeal of the District Court’s decision was transmitted to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on May 5, 2022. On September 2, 2022, the parties consented to dismissal of the case upon withdrawal of the subpoena.