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Robertson v. Princeton University Case Records

Notifications

Held at: Princeton University Library: University Archives [Contact Us]

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Princeton University Library: University Archives. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.

Overview and metadata sections

Call Number:
AC403
Repository:
Princeton University Library: University Archives
Extent:
  • 34 boxes
  • 29 digital files
Language:
English
Preferred Citation:
Robertson v. Princeton University Case Records, Box and Folder Number, Princeton University Archives, Special Collections, Princeton University Library.
Date:
1961-2008 (inclusive)
Creator:
Colman, Jeffrey D.
Form:
Legal documents -- United States -- 20th century. and Born digital.
Abstract:
The Robertson v. Princeton University lawsuit was a dispute between the university and members of the Robertson family regarding the use of a multi-million dollar endowment given by Marie Robertson, wife of Charles Robertson, a member of the Class of 1926. The collection consists of board meeting materials of the Robertson Foundation, depositions of Princeton University administrators including then university president Shirley Tilghman, expert reports, and other documents pertaining to the Robertson v. Princeton University lawsuit.

Colman, Jeffrey D.

The Robertson v. Princeton University lawsuit was a dispute between the university and members of the Robertson family regarding the use of a multi-million dollar endowment given by Marie Robertson, wife of Charles Robertson, a member of the Class of 1926. The funds established the Robertson Foundation in 1961 for the expansion and support of academic study at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. As a result of disagreements over control and disbursement of the funds, in July of 2002 William S. Robertson '72, along with other members of the Robertson family, filed a lawsuit against the University and designated Trustees of the Robertson Foundation. A settlement agreement was reached on December 9, 2008, that called for the dissolution of the Robertson Foundation and the creation of a new fund that would continue support of the graduate program at the Woodrow Wilson School. The records in this collection were transferred to the University Archives through an attorney, Jeffrey D. Colman, acting on behalf of an anonymous donor.

The collection consists of records related to the Robertson v. Princeton University lawsuit including: board meeting materials of the Robertson Foundation, the depositions of several Princeton University administrators including former presidents William G. Bowen, Robert F. Goheen, Harold T. Shapiro, and Shirley Tilghman, reports from experts in finance and law, financial statements, and other legal documents pertaining to the Robertson v. Princeton University lawsuit.

Please see descriptions in contents list for additional information about individual series.

Records have been arranged in five series: Meetings, Depositions, Expert Reports, Audit Reports, and Miscellaneous Documents.

Materials were transferred to the University Archives in July 2014 (Accession number AR.2014.053).

This collection contains materials created and used in digital formats. Researchers are responsible for meeting the technical requirements needed to access these materials, including any and all hardware and software.

This collection was processed by Rossy Mendez in 2015. Finding aid written by Rossy M. Mendez in 2015 with the aid of Jarrett M. Drake.

No materials were separated from the collection at the time of accessioning.

Subject

Publisher
University Archives
Finding Aid Date
2015
Access Restrictions

This collection is closed until November 17, 2026.

Use Restrictions

Single photocopies may be made for research purposes. For quotations that are fair use as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission to cite or publish is required. The Trustees of Princeton University hold copyright to all materials generated by Princeton University employees in the course of their work. If copyright is held by Princeton University, researchers will not need to obtain permission, complete any forms, or receive a letter to move forward with non-commercial use of materials from the Mudd Library. For materials where the copyright is not held by the University, researchers are responsible for determining who may hold the copyright and obtaining approval from them. If you have a question about who owns the copyright for an item, you may request clarification by contacting us through the Ask Us! form.

Collection Inventory

Scope and Contents

Contains board and budget committee minutes, agendas, correspondence, and handwritten notes related to meetings as well as additional supporting materials. Also included in the series is 1 compact disc.

Arrangement

Records in this series are arranged chronologically.

Physical Description

1 box

Robertson Board Meeting Transcripts, 2005 May 5 - 2007 December 13. 10 digital files.
Physical Description

10 digital files

Board Meeting, 2004 May 6. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Board Meeting, 2005 January 20. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

RF Annual Meeting of Trustees, 2005 May 5. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Board Meeting Timescript, 2005 May 5. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Meeting of the Board of Trustees DTD, 2005 May 5. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

RF Special Meeting of Trustees, 2005 October 14. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

RF Special Meeting of Trustees, 2005 November 16. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

RF Special Meeting of Trustees, 2005 December 15. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Meeting of the Board of Trustees, 2006 May 4. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Annual Meeting of the Robertson Foundation, 2006 May 4. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Board Meeting, 2006 May 4. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

RF Special Meeting of Trustees, 2006 October 3. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

RF Special Telephonic Meeting of Trustees, 2007 March 8. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

RF Budget Committee Meeting, 2007 June 7. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

RF Annual Meeting of Trustees, 2007 June 8. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

RF Telephonic Meeting of Trustees, 2007 August 2. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

RF Budget Committee Meeting, 2007 December 13. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Scope and Contents

Contains the depositions of several university administrators including former presidents William G. Bowen, Robert F. Goheen, Harold T. Shapiro, and Shirley M. Tilghman, and former deans of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Anne-Marie Slaughter and Harry Bienen. Also included are the depositions of former Provost Amy Gutmann and former Vice President and Secretary, Thomas H. Wright as well as of several Board of Trustees members.

Arrangement

Records in this series are arranged alphabetically by last name of witness.

Physical Description

27 boxes

Deposition of Henry Bienen (Vol. 1 & 2), 2004 December 14. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of William G. Bowen (Vol. 1 & 2), 2005 January 6. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of William G. Bowen (Vol. 3), 2005 February 16. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of William G. Bowen (Vol. 3), 1972 July 13. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of William G. Bowen (Vol. 3), 2005 February 16. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of William G. Bowen (Vol. 4), 2005 February 17. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Robert F. Goheen (Vol. 1), 2004 June 21. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Robert F. Goheen (Vol. 2 & 3), 2004 June 22. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Amy Gutmann (Vol. 1 & 2) and Stephen A. Oxman, 2004 May 25. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Christopher McCrudden (Vol. 1), 2004 August 17. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Christopher McCrudden (Vol. 2 & 3), 2004 August 18. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Michael Rothschild (Vol. 1 & 2), 2004 June 15. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Michael Rothschild (Vol. 1 & 2), 1997 March 24. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Michael Rothschild (Vol. 3), 2004 June 17. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Harold T. Shapiro (Vol. 1), 2004 August 30. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Harold T. Shapiro (Vol. 2), 2004 August 31. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of John J. Sherrerd (Vol. 1 & 2), 2004 December 1. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Anne-Marie Slaughter (Vol. 1 & 2), 2005 March 21. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Scribner Deposition, 2005 January 19. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Sligar Deposition, 2005 November 21. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Richard Spies, 2004 February 24. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Shirley M. Tilghman (Vol.1 & 2), 2005 February 1. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of James Trussell, 2004 December 14. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Depostiion of Peter C. Wendell, 2004 September 15. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Thomas H. Wright (Vol. 1), 2003 January 14. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Thomas H. Wright (Vol. 2), 2003 January 15. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Deposition of Thomas H. Wright (Vol. 3 & 4), 2003 March 5. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Scope and Contents

Contains reports written by experts in finance and law including Harvey P. Dale, Professor of Philanthrophy and Law at New York University, Marcus S. Owens, former Director of the Exempt Organizations Division of the Internal Revenue Service, Robert M.O'Neil, former president of the University of Virginia, and Sheryl K. Pressler, former Chief Executive Officer of Lend Lease Real Estate Investments, Incorporated.

Arrangement

Records in this series are arranged alphabetically.

Physical Description

4 boxes

Expert Reports, Dale Annotated Plus Exhibits DTD, 2008 August 28. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Supplemental Report, Harvey P. Dale, 2008 July 16. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Harvey P. Dale, 2005 April 15. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Deposition of Howard Schoenfeld, 2005 August 25. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Leave to Appeal Memoranda, 2003 July 28. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Jonathan Marks, 2007 January 8. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, McGuire, 2005 March 22. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, McGuire, Crane Palmer, Josephson, Schoenfeld, Pressler & Nye, 2005 April 6 - 2005 April 18. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Robert M. O'Neil, 2008 November 3. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Oral Arguments, 2006 November 28-29. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Order, 2003 June 20. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Marcus S. Owens, 2003 October 9. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Marcus S. Owens, 2008 September 22. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Palmer's Original Report, 2008 July 16. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Sheryl K. Pressler, 2005 April 12. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Robertson et al (Book 1), 2000 June 1. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Robertson et al (Book 2), 2001 August 16. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Partial Summary Judgement Admitted Overcharges and Offset, 2006 January 31. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Schoenfeld, 2005 August 30. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Joseph Walsh, 2008 November 3. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Expert Reports, Joseph Walsh, 2005 June 21 - 2005 September 20. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Video excerpts from Joseph Walsh Panel on Corporate Governance for Non-Profit Organizations, 2005 May 18. 19 digital files.
Physical Description

19 digital files

Scope and Contents

Contains three audit reports created by the investment firm, Grant Thorton., LLC.

Arrangement

This series is arranged chronologically.

Physical Description

1 box

Robertson Foundation Audit, 2004 July 29. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Grant Thornton Audit Report, 2004 October 25. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Grant Thornton Audit Report, 2008 February 12. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Scope and Contents

Contains other miscellaneous documents pertaining to the Robertson v. Princeton University case including the Robertson Foundation's 990s, correspondence, orders and opinions as well as information related to the Princeton University Investment Company(PRINCO).

Arrangement

This series is arranged alphabetically by subject matter.

Physical Description

4 boxes

Bowen Formula, 2003 May 28. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Eakeley Malone Correspondence, 2006 May 3. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

General Hearing, 2006 April 18. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Interrogatories, 2005 December 7. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Judge Schuster's Orders, 2007 October 25. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Mediation Statement, 2008 April 2. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Order and Opinion, 2005 July 6. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

PRINCO, 2006 February 28. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Robertson 990S, 2005 May 11. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Slaughter Proposal, 2005 December 12. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Slaughter Formula, 2008 November 3. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Simpson Thacher Material, 2002 May 16. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

Volcker Report, 1961 August 22 - 2004 May 21. 1 box.
Physical Description

1 box

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