The Office of Open Records (“OOR”) recently issued a decision in which it denied a request for unredacted invoices of an attorney for a school district based on the attorney-client privilege. In the matter of Campbell v. Pennsbury School District, PA OOR, Docket No.: AP 2018-2171 (Feb. 14, 2019), the OOR upheld a decision of
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Commonwealth Court Grants Attorneys’ Fees Under RTKL in Enforcement Action
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Court Decisions
In an apparent issue of first impression, the Commonwealth Court granted attorneys’ fees in connection with an enforcement action under the RTKL. In Uniontown Newspapers Inc. v. Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, 197 A.3d 825 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2018), the court granted attorneys’ fees to a newspaper in connection with fees incurred to enforce a decision…
Commonwealth Court: OOR Has Authority for In Camera Review Sua Sponte
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Court Decisions
A recent Commonwealth Court decision held that the OOR may conduct an in camera review of records sua sponte even if none of the parties before it makes such a request. The court found that the Pennsylvania RTKL gave the ORR and its appeals officers the authority to conduct such a review. See County of …
RTK Law Limits Access to Government Computers
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Office of Open Records Decisions
A recent decision by the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records (OOR) clarified that a requester is not entitled to access to government computers in order to review data. Cap v. Lehigh and Northampton Transportation Authority, O.O.R. Docket No.: AP 2018-2059 (Dec. 21, 2018). But a later decision involving the same requester did allow…
Statutory Exceptions to RTK Law: Data Not Subject to Disclosure
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Office of Open Records Decisions
We highlight on these pages many decisions that describe the right to obtain records under the RTK Law, but it remains helpful to be aware of enumerated exclusions in the RTK Law that prevent one from obtaining certain documents.
For example, in the recent Final Determination by the Office of Open Records in the matter…