An Alaska Supreme Court decision makes private e-mail messages containing government business subject to the state Public Records Act but also makes obtaining those records difficult.
Friday's ruling held that the state Public Records Act does not prohibit public officials from conducting government business through their private e-mail accounts, potentially posing difficulties for people seeking to access those messages in the future, Alaska media lawyer D. John McKay said in an interview.
Center for International Environmental Law v. U.S. Office of Trade Representative
The Center for International Environmental Law brought suit under the Freedom of Information Act ("FOIA") seeking the disclosure of government records relating to a failed round of trade negotiations. The government withheld a document under FOIA's Exemption 1, which permits federal agencies to withhold information that has been properly classified. The trial court ordered the release of the document, holding that the government had failed to show that releasing the document would cause harm to national security or foreign policy interests. The government appealed to the U.S.