The Vermont Supreme Court's Advisory Committee on Rules for Public Access to Court Records is scheduled to meet on September 13, 2024. The agenda includes several key topics.
Chair Tomasi will open the meeting with announcements and general discussion. The committee will then review and approve the minutes from the previous meeting held on May 3, 2024.
A significant item on the agenda involves potential amendments to Rules 7(a)(3) and 7(a)(4)(B). These rules pertain to post hoc efforts to correct or redact records that should not have been made publicly accessible, following a decision in the Courthouse News case. This case, which allows civil filings to be made public without court review, is currently under appeal in the Second Circuit. The committee had previously decided in July 2022 to wait for the appeal's outcome before making any changes. Updates are expected as the case was argued in April 2023.
Another topic of discussion will be the public-access status of inquests, subpoenas duces tecum, and nontestimonial orders. Prior to the May 2024 meeting, J. Dooley met with Rep. LaLonde and legislative counsel to consider addressing this issue through legislation in the next session. During that meeting, J. Tomasi suggested forming a joint committee with the Criminal Rules Committee to discuss a proposed approach for these case types. J. Dooley, Laura LaRosa, and Tracy Shriver expressed interest in joining this committee.
The committee will also consider expanding remote access for criminal defense counsel at least. An attorney has requested that steps be taken to allow access to cases other than those where they are counsel of record, arguing that current limitations disadvantage them despite being able to access public records at courthouse kiosks. Any proposed changes would need to address limited access set out in various statutes and PACR Rule 5. J. Tomasi indicated he would contact Family and Criminal Oversight Committees about discussing a legislative fix for consideration in the next session.
Lastly, new business will be addressed before setting the date for the next meeting, which may be held either in person or remotely.