Sse BROOKHAVEN NATIONAL LABORATORY ASSOCIATED UNIVERSITIES, INC. Upton, New York 11973 Medical Department AQLSSS (516) 345- 3328 October 25, 1977 Mr. Ronald G. Bakal Attorney at Law 8447 Wilshire Boulevard Suite 409 Beverly Hills, California 90211 Dear Mr. Bakal, Your letter of October 19, 1977, to Dr. Conard, has been referred to me. The fact that your office “demands an explanation," the fact that you appear to believe that your office must be notified of all events relating to the medical surveys in the Marshall Islands, and the fact that your letter was circulated to so many people, has made Dr. Conard wonder if there is involved some legal obligation of which he is ignorant. I share his confusion. I know of no contractual or no statutory basis on which such a legal obligation could be founded. It does seem to me that if you are interested in the reasons why Utirik Atoll was not included in the recent quarterly medical survey, that you question the Utirik Council. It was the Council's notification to Dr. Conard that the services of Dr. Knudsen, the resident physician, would not be welcome on Utirik that forced Dr. Knudsen to bypass Utirik. If your office were to ask Dr. Conard for his recollection of his conversation with members of the Council, I am confident he would be willing to oblige you. Sincerely, N. Peter Rathvon, Jr. General Council gums 5010593