Curious citizen could get $1 million in public records case
In 1997, Seattle hotel owner Armen Yousoufian asked for public documents showing the economic impact of building Qwest Field. He got the runaround from King County and eventually sued. Fastforward 12...
View ArticleState ruling hits national stage with Ron Sims nomination
The afterlife of Yousoufian v. Office of Ron Sims continues. In January the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Armen Yousoufian, who sought to obtain records about taxpayer funding used to build the...
View ArticleNews Tribune wins, will get records of municipal court investigation
The State Supreme Court today unanimously rejected Judge Michael Morgan's stay preventing the release of records from an investigation into his own alleged misconduct. A Federal Way Municipal Court...
View ArticleWhat the Morgan order means (and what it doesn't)
As Trent notes below, the Supreme Court issued an order in Morgan v. City of Federal Way, with an opinion to follow. For the time being, we know the outcome, but not how the court reached it. The...
View ArticleSupreme Court withdraws Yousoufian ruling
The Washington Supreme Court has withdrawn its landmark public records ruling in Yousoufian v. Office of Ron Sims, after King County's motion that Justice Richard Sanders, who wrote the majority...
View ArticleOpinion: Morgan v. City of Federal Way
Morgan v. City of Federal Way, et al., No. 81556-9. The City of Federal Way hired attorney Amy Stephson to investigate a complaint of a hostile work environment at the municipal court. The News Tribune...
View ArticleOpinion: Court records not subject to public disclosure
The Supreme Court has rejected a public records request for local court documents, ruling that the court system is not subject to the state's Public Records Act. David Koenig requested records from the...
View ArticleOral Argument Preview - Are Judicial Records Subject to the Public Records Act?
Tomorrow the Court will hear Yakima County v. Yakima Herald-Republic, which concerns whether the Public Records Act applies to administrative court records, specifically billing records explaining fees...
View ArticleWatch argument on Public Records Act in Yakima County v. Yakima Herald
In case you have a fetish for following open government law, like we do, here's the video from yesterday's oral argument in Yakima County v. Yakima Herald Republic.
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Today's argument - Sanders v. State - March 31, 2010
At 9:00 a.m. this morning the Court will hear one argument on a Public Records Act case. Because it involves a sitting justice, the entire Court may be replaced by pro tem justices (judges drawn from a...
View ArticleSupreme Court candidate caught up in public records case
After Maurice Clemmons shot and killed four Lakewood police officers, the Seattle Times filed several public records requests seeking documents related to the tragedy. The State filed charges against...
View ArticleSupreme Court: email metadata is subject to public disclosure
O'Neill v. City of Shoreline, No. 82397-9. In a case of first impression, the Supreme Court ruled this morning that metadata associated with public records such as email is a public record, subject to...
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New Opinions: September 29, 2011
The Supreme Court issued two new decisions on teacher terminations and public records law. Federal Way Sch. Dist. No. 210 v. Vinson, No. 84243-4. The Supreme Court ruled favor of a former teacher who...
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State Patrol ordered to release bicycle accident records
Gendler v. Batiste, No. 85408-4. Today the Supreme Court ordered the Washington State Patrol to provide accident records to the victim of a bicycle accident. Michael Gendler suffered a severe bicycle...
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