(a) All confidential supervisory information and other nonpublic information, including but not limited to information made available under this subpart, remains the property of the Board, and except as otherwise provided in this regulation, no person, entity, agency, or authority to whom the information is made available or who otherwise possesses the information, including any officer, director, employee, or agent thereof, may use any such information for an unauthorized purpose or disclose any such information without the prior written permission of the General Counsel.

(b) The disclosure of confidential supervisory information or other nonpublic information in accordance with this subpart shall not constitute a waiver by the Board of any applicable privileges.

(c) Nothing in this subpart shall be construed to limit or restrict the authority of the Board to impose any additional conditions or limitations on the use and disclosure of confidential supervisory information or other nonpublic information. Further, nothing in this subpart shall be construed to limit or restrict the authority of the Board to make discretionary disclosures of confidential supervisory information or other nonpublic information in addition to the disclosures expressly provided for in this subpart.

(a) Disclosure of confidential supervisory information to supervised financial institutions. The Board or the appropriate Reserve Bank may disclose confidential supervisory information concerning a supervised financial institution to that supervised financial institution.

(b) Disclosure of confidential supervisory information by supervised financial institutions—(1) General. Any supervised financial institution lawfully in possession of confidential supervisory information pursuant to this section may when necessary or appropriate for business purposes disclose such information to its directors, officers, or employees, and to the directors, officers, or employees of its affiliates.

(2) Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, and State financial supervisory agencies. Any supervised financial institution may, with the concurrence of the institution's central point of contact at the Reserve Bank, equivalent supervisory team leader, or other designated Reserve Bank employee (hereinafter, “Reserve Bank Point of Contact” or “Reserve Bank POC”), disclose confidential supervisory information about the institution that is contained in documents prepared by or for the institution for its own business purposes to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, and the State financial supervisory agency that supervises that institution when the Reserve Bank POC determines that the receiving agency has a legitimate supervisory or regulatory interest in the information. A Reserve Bank POC's action under this paragraph may require concurrence of other Federal Reserve staff in accordance with internal supervisory procedures. Requests to disclose any other confidential supervisory information to these or other agencies should be directed to the General Counsel under § 261.22(c) or § 261.23(c).

(3) Legal counsel and auditors. When necessary or appropriate in connection with the provision of legal or auditing services to the supervised financial institution, the supervised financial institution may disclose confidential supervisory information to its legal counsel or auditors. The supervised financial institution may also disclose confidential supervisory information to service providers (such as consultants, contractors, contingent workers, and technology providers) of its legal counsel or auditors if the service provider is under a written agreement with the legal counsel or auditor in which the service provider agrees that:

(i) It will treat the confidential supervisory information in accordance with § 261.20(a); and

(ii) It will not use the confidential supervisory information for any purpose other than as necessary to provide the services to the supervised financial institution.

(4) Other service providers. (i) A supervised financial institution may disclose confidential supervisory information to other service providers engaged by the supervised financial institution if the service provider is under a written contract to provide services to the institution, the disclosure of the confidential supervisory information is deemed necessary to the service provider's provision of services, and the service provider has a written agreement with the institution in which the service provider has agreed that:

(A) It will treat the confidential supervisory information in accordance with § 261.20(a); and

(B) It will not use the confidential supervisory information for any purpose other than as provided under its contract to provide services to the supervised financial institution.

(ii) A supervised financial institution shall maintain a written account of the disclosures of confidential supervisory information that the supervised financial institution makes to service providers under this section and provide the Board or Reserve Bank with a copy of such written account upon the Board's or Reserve Bank's request.

(a) Disclosure to Federal and State financial institution supervisory agencies. The Director of the Division of Supervision and Regulation, the Director of the Division of Consumer and Community Affairs, the General Counsel, or the appropriate Reserve Bank may, for legitimate supervisory or regulatory purposes and with or without a request, disclose confidential supervisory information and other nonpublic information to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, and a State financial institution supervisory agency.

(b) Disclosures pursuant to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Fair Housing Act, and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. The Director of the Division of Supervision and Regulation, the Director of the Division of Consumer and Community Affairs, or the General Counsel may disclose confidential supervisory information and other nonpublic information concerning a supervised financial institution to:

(1) The Attorney General or to the Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development related to the enforcement of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (15 U.S.C. 1691 et seq.) or the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.); and

(2) The Secretary of the Department of Labor and the Secretary of the Department the Treasury in accordance with section 3004(b) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1204(b)).

(c) Disclosure to other governmental agencies and entities exercising governmental authority. Except as provided in paragraph (d) or (e) of this section, other Federal, State, and local agencies, including law enforcement agencies, and other entities exercising governmental authority, may file written requests with the Board for access to confidential supervisory information and other nonpublic information under this section, including information in the form of testimony and interviews from current or former Federal Reserve System staff. Properly accredited foreign law enforcement agencies and other foreign government agencies may also file written requests with the Board in accordance with this paragraph, except that provision of confidential supervisory information to foreign bank regulatory or supervisory authorities is governed by 12 CFR 211.27.

(1) Contents of request. To obtain access to confidential supervisory information or other nonpublic information under this section, including information in the possession of a person other than the Board, the requester shall address a letter request to the Board's General Counsel, specifying:

(i) The particular information, kinds of information, and where possible, the particular documents to which access is sought;

(ii) The reasons why such information cannot be obtained from the supervised financial institution in question or another source rather than from the Board;

(iii) A statement of the law enforcement purpose or other statutory purpose for which the information shall be used;

(iv) A commitment that the information requested shall not be disclosed to any person outside the requesting agency or entity without the written permission of the General Counsel; and

(v) If the document or information requested includes customer account information subject to the Right to Financial Privacy Act, as amended (12 U.S.C. 3401 et seq.), any Federal agency request must include a statement that such customer account information need not be provided, or a statement as to why the Act does not apply to the request, or a certification that the requesting Federal agency has complied with the requirements of the Act.

(2) Action on request. The General Counsel may approve the request upon determining that:

(i) The request complies with this section;

(ii) The information is needed in connection with a formal investigation or other official duties of the requesting agency or entity;

(iii) Satisfactory assurances of confidentiality have been given; and

(iv) Disclosure is consistent with the supervisory and regulatory responsibilities and policies of the Board.

(d) Federal and State grand jury, criminal trial, and government administrative subpoenas. The General Counsel shall review and may approve the disclosure of nonpublic information pursuant to Federal and State grand jury, criminal trial, and government administrative subpoenas.

(e) Conditions or limitations; written agreements. The General Counsel may impose any conditions or limitations on disclosure that the General Counsel determines to be necessary to effect the purposes of this regulation, including the protection of the confidentiality of the Board's information, or to ensure compliance with applicable laws or regulations. In addition, Board or Reserve Bank staff may make disclosures pursuant to any written agreement entered into by the Board when authorized by the express terms of such agreement or by the General Counsel.

(a) Board policy. (1) It is the Board's policy regarding confidential supervisory information that such information is confidential and privileged. Accordingly, the Board does not normally disclose confidential supervisory information to the public or authorize third parties in possession of confidential supervisory information to further use or disclose the information. When considering a request to access, use, or to disclose confidential supervisory information under this section, the Board will not authorize access, use, or disclosure unless the requesting person is able to show a substantial need to access, use, or disclose such information that outweighs the need to maintain confidentiality.

(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, the Board will not authorize access to or disclosure of any suspicious activity report (SAR), or any information that would reveal the existence of a SAR, except as necessary to fulfill official duties consistent with Title II of the Bank Secrecy Act. For purposes of this part, “official duties” shall not include the disclosure of a SAR, or any information that would reveal the existence of a SAR, in response to a request for disclosure of nonpublic information or a request for use in a private legal proceeding, including a request pursuant to this section.

(b) Requests in connection with litigation. Except as provided in §§ 261.21 and 261.22:

(1) In connection with any proposed use of confidential supervisory information in litigation before a court, board, commission, agency, or arbitration, any person who—

(i) Seeks access to confidential supervisory information from the Board or a Reserve Bank (including the testimony of present or former Board or Reserve Bank employees on matters involving confidential supervisory information, whether by deposition or otherwise),

(ii) Seeks to use confidential supervisory information in its possession or to disclose such information to another party, or

(iii) Seeks to require a person to disclose confidential supervisory information to a party, shall file a written request with the General Counsel.

(2) The request shall include:

(i) The judicial or administrative action, including the case number and court or adjudicative body and a copy of the complaint or other pleading setting forth the assertions in the case;

(ii) A description of any prior judicial or other decisions or pending motions in the case that may bear on the asserted relevance of the requested information;

(iii) A narrow and specific description of the confidential supervisory information the requester seeks to access or to disclose for use in the litigation including, whenever possible, the specific documents the requester seeks to access or disclose;

(iv) The relevance of the confidential supervisory information to the issues or matters raised by the litigation;

(v) The reason why the information sought, or equivalent information adequate to the needs of the case, cannot be obtained from any other source; and

(vi) A commitment to obtain a protective order acceptable to the Board from the judicial or administrative tribunal hearing the action preserving the confidentiality of any information that is provided.

(3) In the case of requests covered by paragraph (b)(1)(ii) of this section, the Board may require the party to whom disclosure would ultimately be made to substantiate its need for the information prior to acting on any request.

(c) All other requests. Any other person seeking to access, use, or disclose confidential supervisory information for any other purpose shall file a written request with the General Counsel. A request under this paragraph (c) shall describe the purpose for which access, use, or disclosure is sought and the requester shall provide other information as requested by the General Counsel.

(d) Action on request—(1) Determination of approval. The General Counsel may approve a request made under this section provided that he or she determines that:

(i) The person seeking access, or the person to whom access would be provided, has shown a substantial need to access confidential supervisory information that outweighs the need to maintain confidentiality; and

(ii) Approval is consistent with the supervisory and regulatory responsibilities and policies of the Board.

(2) Conditions or limitations. The General Counsel may, in approving a request, impose such conditions or limitations on use of any information disclosed as is deemed necessary to protect the confidentiality of the Board's information.

(e) Exhaustion of administrative remedies for discovery purposes in civil, criminal, or administrative action. Action on a request under this section by the General Counsel is necessary in order to exhaust administrative remedies for discovery purposes in any civil, criminal, or administrative proceeding. A request made pursuant to § 261.11 of this regulation does not exhaust administrative remedies for discovery purposes. Therefore, it is not necessary to file a request pursuant to § 261.11 to exhaust administrative remedies under this section.

(a) Advice by person served. Any person (including any officer, employee, or agent of the Board or any Reserve Bank) who is served with a subpoena, order, or other judicial or administrative process requiring the production of confidential supervisory information or other nonpublic information of the Board or requiring the person's testimony regarding such Board information in any proceeding, shall:

(1) Promptly inform the Board's General Counsel of the service and all relevant facts, including the documents, information or testimony demanded, and any facts relevant to the Board in determining whether the material requested should be made available;

(2) Inform the entity issuing the process of the substance of these rules and, in particular, of the obligation to follow the request procedures in § 261.23(b); and

(3) At the appropriate time inform the court or tribunal that issued the process of the substance of these rules.

(b) Appearance by person served. Unless authorized by the Board or as ordered by a Federal court in a judicial proceeding in which the Board has had the opportunity to appear and oppose discovery, any person who is required to respond to a subpoena or other legal process concerning Board confidential supervisory information or other nonpublic Board information shall attend at the time and place required and respectfully decline to disclose or to give any testimony with respect to the information, basing such refusal upon the provisions of this regulation. If the court or other body orders the disclosure of the information or the giving of testimony, the person having the information shall continue to decline to disclose the information and shall promptly report the facts to the Board for such action as the Board may deem appropriate.

(c) Civil requests for production. A litigant or non-party who is served with a civil request for production of documents calling for production of confidential supervisory information should proceed under § 261.23 rather than this section.