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Source archive Tier A

United States v. Sells Engineering, Inc., 463 U.S. 418 (1983)

United States, Petitioner v. Sells Engineering, Inc., et al., 463 U.S. 418 (1983). Argued March 2, 1983. Decided June 30, 1983.

Custody docket

Record
us-v-sells-engineering-463-us-418-1983
Type
archive
Trust tier
A
Status
published

Sources are graded A (primary) / B (secondary academic) / C (secondary journalism) / D (tertiary or contested). See the manifesto’s Evidence Standard for full criteria.

Grand jury secrecy under Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 6(e). The Court of Appeals had held that Civil Division attorneys could obtain disclosure of grand jury materials only on a showing of particularized need under Rule 6(e)(3), rather than automatically as “an attorney for the government for use in the performance of such attorney’s duty.”

Docketed by POSTPONED as authority that grand jury secrecy is broad and structural, and that disclosure carries a burden rather than being available on request.

Filed 2026-08-04, same finding as kent-v-dulles-357-us-116-1958: docketed since publication with no record, invisible to every existing gate because each asked whether a record was correct and none asked whether one existed.

Provenance

Creator
Supreme Court of the United States
Published
1983
Accessed
2026-08-04

Cited by

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