Albertson v. Subversive Activities Control Board

In Albertson v. Subversive Activities Control Board, 382 U.S. 70, 79, 86 S.Ct. 194, 15 L.Ed.2d 165 (1965), the Court pointed out that it was based on two grounds: (1) a claim of self-incrimination against every question on the tax return or on the mere submission of the return would be "virtually frivolous"; and (2) to honor the claim of privilege not asserted at the time the return was due would make the taxpayer rather than a tribunal the final arbiter of the merits of the claim of privilege. In Albertson the Subversive Activities Control Board required registration by individual members of the Communist Party when the Party itself refused to register under the Subversive Activities Control Act of 1950. The Court upheld the refusal of individual members of the Communist Party to answer any of the questions on the registration form because the area of inquiry was permeated with criminal statutes and responses to any of the questions in the form might involve the member in the admission of a crucial element of a crime. 382 U.S. at 79, 86 S.Ct. 194.