Gulamhussein and Another v. Cohen and Another – sllr 2002 volume 2 page 328

In Gulamhussein and another v. Cohen and another, the court addressed whether tax returns and audited accounts filed with the United States Inland Revenue Services are privileged documents and if parties can be compelled to produce documents not in their possession. It was held that such documents are privileged, submitted confidentially, and remain the property of the United States Government, making them generally inaccessible to opposing parties. The findings established that, in the absence of actual possession by the respondents, a compulsion to produce could not be sustained. The application for revision and the leave to appeal against the District Judge’s order were both refused, with costs imposed. The principle reaffirmed was that privileged documents not within a party’s possessi