Title: William A. Roberts Papers
Inclusive Dates: 1942-1956

Creator:

• Roberts, William A., 1900-

Call Number: U.S. Mss AJ

Quantity: 2.4 c.f. (6 archives boxes)

Repository:

Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections

Archival Locations:

Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)

COLLECTION MAY BE STORED OFF-SITE: see catalog entry to request materials and for additional information.

Abstract:

Files kept by the Washington law firm of Roberts and McInnis in the civil suit filed in 1951 by Drew Pearson against Senator Joseph R. McCarthy, Fulton Lewis, Jr., Westbrook Pegler, Morris A. Bealle, Edward K. Nellor, Donald Surine, George Waters, and the Washington Times-Herald on charges of libel, slander, and conspiracy to damage the plaintiff's business. William A. Roberts served as senior attorney for Pearson.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-us0000aj

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On March 2, 1951, Drew Pearson, newspaper columnist and radio commentator, filed a multi-million dollar civil suit against Senator Joseph R. McCarthy,, Fulton Lewis, Jr., the Washington Times-Herald, Edward K. Nellor, George Waters, Donald Surine, Morris A. Bealle, Westbrook Pegler, and J. B. Mathews on four counts:

1. He charged McCarthy with assault and battery, deliberately planned and intended to physically injure the Plaintiff.
2. He charged McCarthy with libelous statements concerning the Plaintiff, intended to discredit Pearson personally and professionally.
3. He charged all the Defendants with a conspiracy to hold the Plaintiff up to public scorn and ridicule for the purpose of damaging his business and preventing sale of his product.
4. He charged all the Defendants with libelous and slanderous statements concerning the Plaintiff's character, with the intention of injuring his reputation.

As his attorneys, Pearson employed the law firm of Roberts and McInnis, Washington, D.C., which at that time had a staff of sixteen. Col. William A. Roberts often took cases considered to be of “public interest,” and served as the senior attorney in Pearson's suit.

The collection contains correspondence exchanged by Roberts and others in the law firm with Pearson and Pearson's New York attorney, Jack Lewis Kraus; correspondence between the law firm and others involved in the case; memoranda and notes prepared by the lawyers working on the case; depositions given by Pearson, McCarthy, Lewis, Pegler, Surine, Robert R. McCormick, and others; transcripts of the pleading; copies of court briefs; summaries and copies of newspaper and periodical articles, press releases, and broadcasts bearing on the suit; and assorted other background documents and investigation reports.

They are arranged in three categories: Matters of Public Record, Underlying Material Procured on Investigation, and Communications between Lawyer and Client and Between Lawyers.

Acquisition Information

Presented by Col. William A. Roberts, Washington, D.C., July 28, 1961.

	Series: Matters of Public Record
Box   1	Copies of pleading and briefs filed in the U.S. District Court, District of Columbia, March 2, 1951 - circa February 13, 1956
Box   1	Official transcripts in the U.S. District Court, District of Columbia, September 6, 12, 26, 1951; May 26, 1952
Box   1	Copies of briefs relating to Drew Pearson or Joseph R. McCarthy filed in courts other than the U.S. District Court, District of Columbia, June 18, 1941; July 12, 1949; May 22, 1950; October 14, 1955; September 30, 1955; December 28, 1955
Box   1	Mimeographed copy of testimony of Senator William Benton before the Subcommittee on Privileges and Elections of the Rules Committee of the Senate, September 28, 1957
Box   1	Lists of telephone toll charges and addresses
Box   1	Post card notifications from the court clerk
Box   2	Case files (Cases cited by Roberts and McInnis' law clerks pertinent to the Pearson suit, often with quotations from cases)
Box   2	Summaries of newspaper articles and columns
Box   2	Summaries and copies of speeches of Joseph R. McCarthy
Box   2	Press releases and reprints of articles
Box   2	Copies of broadcasts by Fulton Lewis, Jr., December 13, 14, 15, 18, 1950
Box   2	Newspaper and magazine clippings, 1949-1956
Box   2	Index of right-wing organizations and foundations financing them
Box   2	“Communism - Is Such Imputation Defamatory?,” a thesis by H. David Gann
Box   2	Carbon copy of a case study of Pearson v. McCarthy et al. Note: Written as a thesis by a law student[?]
	Series: Underlying Material Procured on Investigation	⇧
Box   3	Correspondence between the Roberts and McInnis law firm and others, February 7, 1950 - Feb. 13, 1956, undated Note: With the exception of correspondence with Drew Pearson and with Pearson's N.Y. attorney, Jack Lewis Kraus.
Box   3	Photostats of Joseph R. McCarthy's state income tax returns, 1943-1945, 1947-1950
Box   3	Deposition of Drew Pearson, September 25 and October 4, 1951
Box   3	Deposition of Joseph R. McCarthy, September 26 and October 5, 1951
Box   4	Deposition of Frank C. Waldrop, October 1, 1951
Box   4	Deposition of Robert R. McCormick, October 16, 1951
Box   4	Deposition of Donald A. Surine, November 9, 1951
Box   4	Depositions of Joseph Saik and Lewis M. Cowen, August 29, 1952
Box   4	Deposition of Fulton Lewis, Jr., January 27, 1953
Box   4	Deposition of Raymond L. Kiermas, April 7, 1953
Box   4	Deposition of Westbrook Pegler, July 2 and 3, 1953
Box   4	Deposition of Elias Lustig, November 29, 1955
Box   5	Typewritten notes re the depositions of Drew Pearson
Box   5	Background information and investigations re Joseph R. McCarthy, Morris A. Bealle, Charles Davis, Ray Kiermas, Fulton Lewis, Jr., Col. Robert R. McCormick, Edward K. Nellor, Westbrook Pegler, Thomas Stotler, Donald A. Surine, Washington Times-Herald and Frank C. Waldrop, and George Waters
Box   5	Miscellaneous information and investigators' reports
Box   5	Affidavit of John Henshaw
Box   5	Photostatic copies of Pearson's Adams Hat Company contract, and correspondence relating to it
	Series: Communications Between Lawyer and Client, and Between Lawyers	⇧
Box   6	Correspondence between lawyers in the office of Roberts and McInnis, Drew Pearson, and Pearson's N. Y. attorney, Jack Lewis Kraus, 1942, 1950-1956
Box   6	Information that lawyers in the office of Roberts and McInnis wrote and directed to “The Files”
Box   6	Information concerning himself and his professional activities, furnished by Drew Pearson to his lawyers
Box   6	Miscellaneous memoranda written by lawyers in the office of Roberts and McInnis