Please follow the link to read about the Court of Appeals’ recent Public Records Act decision, which discusses the obligation to respond to a public records request within five business days.
Archive for the ‘Public Records Act’ category
West v. Washington State Department of Natural Resources
September 2, 2011Gendler v. Batiste – Public Records Act and Traffic Accident Reports
November 30, 2010In Gendler v. Batiste, the Court of Appeals held that the Washington State Patrol (WSP) was required to disclose historical bicycle accident records of accidents occurring on Seattle’s Montlake Bridge. The requestor had suffered serious injuries when his bike tire became wedged in the bridge’s grating. The requestor suspected that the bridge had been unsafe [...]
O’Neill v. City of Shoreline – Metadata
October 15, 2010The Supreme Court recently affirmed that metadata is a public record. However, a normal public records request for an e-mail does not include a request for metadata unless metadata is specifically mentioned and requested. This case is a good reminder of the dangers of using personal computers for city or agency business, as the Court [...]
Court of Appeals issues decision in Kitsap County Prosecuting Attorneys Guild v. Kitsap County
May 17, 2010On May 11, 2010, the Division II Court of Appeals issued a decision in Kitsap County Prosecuting Attorneys Guild v. Kitsap County, No. 39196-1-II, confirming that an award of attorneys fees, costs, and penalties under the Public Records Act (“Act”) is mandatory if a court determines that the government agency wrongfully withholds or fails to disclose public records.
Supreme Court Assesses Penalty of $371,340 for Public Records Act Violation
March 29, 2010The Supreme Court issued its decision in Yousoufian v. Office of Ron Sims, assessing a penalty for violation of the Public Records Act at $45 per day for 8,252 days (differing lengths of time for various categories of records), for a total penalty of $371,340. Attorneys fees will be added to this total. In 1997 [...]
Clarification Regarding Privilege/Exemption Logs Under Public Records Act
February 2, 2010A series of reported and unreported cases from Washington Courts over the last calendar year has underscored the importance of preparing a timely, complete, and accurate privilege/exemption log in response to any and all public records requests wherein records will be withheld due to exemption or privilege.
New Supreme Court Decision Regarding Public Records Act
October 16, 2009The Washington State Supreme Court issued its decision today in City of Federal Way v. Koenig, __ Wn.2d __ (Oct. 15, 2009), holding that the Public Records Act (chapter 42.56 RCW) does not apply to the judiciary or judicial records.
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