310 results for 'cat:"Public Record"'.
J. Moss partially grants the FDA's motion for summary judgment and the tobacco vaporizer maker's cross-motion for summary judgment in a Freedom of Information Act suit brought by the vape maker seeking information on its denied premarket tobacco applications. The FDA's withholding of records under an exemption for "inter-agency or intra-agency memorandums or letters" was proper because those documents were part of the deliberative process, regardless of the vape maker's various arguments that they were produced after the agency's decisions were made, because they were nevertheless produced before those decisions were finalized and published. Memos summarizing scientific data also are not privilege-free scientific reports in this case, since they were compiled for deliberative purposes. The agency has also established that the release of withheld memos would cause foreseeable harm and would chill the ongoing supervisory review process.
Court: USDC District of Columbia, Judge: Moss, Filed On: April 23, 2024, Case #: 1:22cv2853, NOS: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) - Other Suits, Categories: Administrative Law, Government, public Record
J. Patterson finds that the appellate division properly dismissed claims contending the County Prosecutors of New Jersey constitutes a public agency subject to public records requests because a prosecutor is not a "political subdivision" of the state, and no statute or regulation requires nonprofit associations to maintain the requested documents. Affirmed.
Court: New Jersey Supreme Court, Judge: Patterson , Filed On: April 17, 2024, Case #: A-33-22, Categories: public Record
J. Fischer finds the lower court properly denied the newspaper's public records requests. When combined in a single request, the names, addresses, and causes of death for deceased individuals constitute "protected health information" not subject to disclosure under the Ohio Public Records Act. Although another statute makes death certificates public information, the inclusion of a cause of death with a decedent's name and address allows a petitioner to discover the past health status of an individual - prohibited by the Public Records Act - and so petitioners cannot seek disclosure of the records "en masse." Affirmed.
Court: Ohio Supreme Court, Judge: Fischer, Filed On: April 17, 2024, Case #: 2024-Ohio-1399, Categories: Government, Health Care, public Record
J. Aarons finds that the lower court properly dismissed a request to review the decision denying public records sought by plaintiff following revocation of his driver's license after he failed to attend a rescheduled hearing associated with his DUI arrest. The department of motor vehicles provided a copy of the hearing notice, and evidence did not indicate notice had been returned as undeliverable. Since revocation of the license was subsequently vacated, that issue is moot. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Aarons, Filed On: April 11, 2024, Case #: CV-23-0289, Categories: Civil Procedure, Licensing, public Record
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J. Mackey finds that the lower court improperly reduced counsel fees awarded after plaintiff prevailed in claims seeking information from police relating to an alleged trespassing incident because the flat $5,000 award, reduced from the combined $33,300 sought by two attorneys, rendered the hourly rate more conforming to the locality without accounting for the hours put in. Instead, $12,100 should have been awarded, plus costs incurred. Reversed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Mackey, Filed On: April 11, 2024, Case #: CV-23-1044, Categories: public Record, Attorney Fees
J. Bendix finds that the trial court properly ordered the production of entries in the calendar of the governor's former senior energy advisor showing meetings with utilities, unions and the Public Utilities Commission. The deliberative process privilege does not apply because the public records request asked simply whether the meetings took place, not for information about the substance of the meetings. Also, the public has a substantial interest in knowing the level of interaction between the former advisor, Alice Reynolds, and the commission she now presides over as president.
Court: California Courts Of Appeal, Judge: Bendix, Filed On: April 5, 2024, Case #: B330847, Categories: public Record, Privilege
J. Friedrich grants the Department of Justice's motion for summary judgment and partially grants the nonprofit's motion for summary judgment in the nonprofit's Freedom of Information Act action seeking records on the procurement of lethal-injection drugs. The names of contractors providing the drugs are confidential commercial information, as are key contract terms, and the department has shown that foreseeable harm would result from their disclosure. The department has, however, waived an exemption for some materials by publicly sharing it elsewhere. The department is ordered to produce sixteen challenged records and five publicly disclosed records for in camera review.
Court: USDC District of Columbia, Judge: Friedrich, Filed On: March 31, 2024, Case #: 1:19cv3626, NOS: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) - Other Suits, Categories: Government, public Record
J. Lum finds the lower court properly denied the city's motion to exclude the draft of an annual financial report from the resident's public records request. Although the document was prepared for the benefit of elected officials, it was required to be sent to the state auditor and, therefore, did not involve any official discretion and was not work product subject to exemption under the Colorado Open Records Act. Affirmed.
Court: Colorado Court Of Appeals, Judge: Lum, Filed On: March 28, 2024, Case #: 2024COA30, Categories: Government, public Record
J. Casper denies a man with a criminal past’s motion to dismiss claims brought against him by a website owner, who the former criminal sent threatening emails to and published critical content about after the webmaster published information about his criminal history. The webmaster met the burden of showing he has plausibly suffered more than $75,000 in damages.
Court: USDC Massachusetts, Judge: Casper, Filed On: March 25, 2024, Case #: 1:23cv10134, NOS: Assault, Libel, & Slander - Torts - Personal Injury, Categories: public Record, Damages, Defamation
Per curiam, the Ohio Supreme Court partially grants a writ of mandamus for the release of records related to a prisoner’s six public records requests. The court awards him statutory damages of $1,000 each, for two requests that were not fulfilled by the Ohio Department of Corrections. As for the other requests, the inmate submitted several requests to a contractor of the Ohio Department of Corrections that was not the custodian of the records; receiving referrals to the proper office does not constitute a denial of the request.
Court: Ohio Supreme Court, Judge: Per curiam, Filed On: March 21, 2024, Case #: 2024-Ohio-1015, Categories: public Record, Damages
Per curiam, the appellate division finds that the lower court improperly awarded the press $114,000 in attorneys fees in its FOIA suit against the police department seeking records concerning a traffic accident. This appeals court previously held that the police department had a reasonable basis for denying access to the requested records, so it is not entitled to attorney fees for work performed prior to the department's production of records. However, the court properly granted fees and costs arising from the police department's noncompliance with this court's prior order, and for contempt proceedings stemming from the department's months-long delay in disclosing responsive documents. Reversed in part.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Per curiam, Filed On: March 19, 2024, Case #: 01511, Categories: public Record, Attorney Fees
J. Cassel finds the county court improperly granted the journalists' request for a writ of mandamus. The journalists sought public record emails to or from agency staff members containing keywords “nitrate,” “nutrient,” “fertilizer” or “nitrogen,” which resulted in a charge of more than $44,000. Though the journalists were authorized to challenge the fee, relevant statute allows a public body to impose a special service charge for time spent by non-attorney employees in excess of 4 cumulative hours reviewing requested public records for a statutory basis to withhold one or more of the records in whole or in part. Vacated in part.
Court: Nebraska Supreme Court, Judge: Cassel , Filed On: March 15, 2024, Case #: S-23-155, Categories: public Record
J. Armstead reverses the lower court's order granting the state tax department's motion to dismiss the non-profit tax news publisher's suit seeking to compel the department to disclose copies of current field audit manuals, audit training manuals, and training and continuing education materials under the West Virginia Freedom of Information Act. The judge erred in accepting carte blanche the department's reliance on the section of W. Va. Code prohibiting the release of documents that disclose the standards used “for the selection of [tax] returns for examination or data used or to be used for determining such standards” without first requiring it to produce a Vaughn Index "to detail why the requested information is exempt from disclosure and identify which exemption applies." Reversed.
Court: West Virginia Supreme Court Of Appeals, Judge: Armstead, Filed On: March 15, 2024, Case #: 22-491, Categories: Government, public Record, Tax
J. Boasberg denies, in part, the Department of Health and Human Services' motion for summary judgment on a nonprofit's Freedom of Information Act case seeking records related to homeopathic medicine. The department fails to prove that certain redacted, commercial information is privileged and confidential, nor has it shown it conducted an adequate search for certain materials.
Court: USDC District of Columbia, Judge: Boasberg, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: 1:21cv3118, NOS: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) - Other Suits, Categories: public Record
J. Cooper denies, in part, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's motion for summary judgment on a nonprofit's Freedom of Information Act case seeking text messages from three agency workers. Although the agency properly applied deliberative process privilege to certain messages, it failed to show foreseeable harm in their disclosure; thus, the agency will be given a second chance to justify the withholdings.
Court: USDC District of Columbia, Judge: Cooper, Filed On: March 13, 2024, Case #: 1:22cv3414, NOS: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) - Other Suits, Categories: Energy, public Record
J. McGee finds the lower court properly denied a petition for judicial review. A journalist requested to view surveillance video of an incident that allegedly occurred inside a jail, which was denied by the sheriff’s office as well as the District Attorney General’s Office. The lower court found that the requested surveillance video involved the security of a government building and was not subject to disclosure to the public pursuant to a statutory exemption specifically pertaining to surveillance video. The instant court finds no error in the lower court findings. Affirmed.
Court: Tennessee Court of Appeals, Judge: McGee, Filed On: March 11, 2024, Case #: W2023-00293-COA-R3-CV, Categories: Government, public Record
J. Bahr finds that the district court properly dismissed a complaint requesting the district court order a company to provide an investor with certain information after the company solicited bids for a project that involved drilling two groundwater monitoring wells as part of a carbon dioxide capture project. The lower court properly entered attorney fees in favor of the company. Affirmed.
Court: North Dakota Supreme Court, Judge: Bahr , Filed On: March 7, 2024, Case #: 2024ND44, Categories: Environment, public Record
J. Contreras denies, in part, the CIA's motion for summary judgment on a news publication's Freedom of Information Act case seeking records related to U.S. foreign relations and operations between the 1940s and 1970s. The CIA fails to sufficiently support certain withholdings under the National Security Act, and must submit an ex parte in camera declaration related to those withheld documents.
Court: USDC District of Columbia, Judge: Contreras, Filed On: March 7, 2024, Case #: 1:22cv1138, NOS: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) - Other Suits, Categories: Communications, Government, public Record