[WEBINAR] Exploring the CPRA’s Investigatory Privilege
[WEBINAR] Social Media Meets the First Amendment
[WEBINAR] The Public Records Act - Taming the Email Tiger
While seasons change, many things remain the same. While many modifications were made to a public office’s responsibilities because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Public Records Act remained the same....more
Part 2: New CPRA Laws for 2020 - While an expansive array of records can be sought via a California Public Records Act request, the right to inspect public records is not without limits. The CPRA does not give unlimited...more
A recent California appellate court decision underscores the sanctity of the attorney-client privilege — holding that even an in camera review of claimed privileged communications is not permitted. This applies even though a...more
The objective of the Right to Know Law (“RTKL”) is to empower citizens by affording them access to information concerning the activities of their government. Further, this important open-government law is designed to promote...more
Holland & Knight issued an alert in June 2015, written by Allison Martin Rhodes and Craig S. Weinstein, regarding an earlier California Court of Appeal ruling in this case. This alert provides an update after a December 2016...more
The California Supreme Court recently held, in Los Angeles Board of Supervisors v. Superior Court (2016) that attorneys’ invoices may not be protected by the attorney-client privilege after litigation ends. The issue arose...more
In Disney’s The Lion King, the wise lion Mufasa sits atop a rock crag with his heir, the cub Simba, looking down on the Serengeti below. “Everything the light touches,” Mufasa instructs, “is our kingdom.” A similar scene...more
Attorney invoices may be protected in their entirety by the attorney-client privilege during ongoing litigation. After litigation has concluded, however, those same invoices may be discoverable. So concludes the California...more
In a 4-3 decision, the California Supreme Court ruled that attorney invoices submitted to public agencies are not categorically exempt from disclosure under the California Public Records Act. Los Angeles County Board of...more
In a case that pitted government transparency against a public agency’s interest in confidential communications with its attorney, the California Supreme Court came down on the side of protecting attorney-client privileged...more
On October 6, the California Supreme Court heard oral argument in Los Angeles Board of Supervisors v. Superior Court, a case that we have blogged about twice in the past because of its possible impact on policyholders...more
On March 17, 2016, the California Supreme Court resolved an important case regarding the California Public Records Act, ruling unanimously that the inadvertent release of confidential documents does not waive the...more
In a unanimous opinion addressing a legal issue of statewide importance, the California Supreme Court resolved a split of authority and held that a governmental entity’s inadvertent release of privileged documents under the...more
Last year, I wrote about the Second Appellate District case of Ardon v. City of Los Angeles. In Ardon, the appellate court found that a public agency can waive statutory privileges that it otherwise would have if it produces...more
An appellate court ordered a trial court judge to reconsider his order that e-mails to and from the San Diego city attorney’s personal account be released publicly. The League of California Cities argued that e-mails between...more
*As published in PublicCEO A Bay Area school district that inadvertently released attorney-client privilege documents following the resignation of its superintendent did not waive its disclosure exemption right granted...more
In January, I wrote about the Second Appellate District case of Ardon v. City of Los Angeles. In Ardon, the court found that a public entity can waive statutory privileges that it otherwise would have if it produces...more
On July 31, 2015, the Court of Appeal for the First Appellate District, Division One, filed a 23-page published opinion holding that the inadvertent disclosure of attorney-client privileged and work product protected...more
A California appellate court has ruled that inadvertent disclosure of documents containing attorney-client communications in response to a Public Records Act request does not result in a waiver of the privilege. Newark...more
The combined efforts of Massachusetts’ highest court, its legislature, and the Governor’s office are clarifying and modernizing Massachusetts public records law, which is considered by some to be one of the weakest in the...more
California Appellate Court Rules in Case Likely to be Decided by State Supreme Court - A public agency that inadvertently released attorney-client privileged documents to the public did not waive its right for those...more
In June, I blogged about County of Los Angeles Board of Supervisors v. Superior Court, 235 Cal. App. 4th 1154 (2015). In that case, the California Court of Appeal (Second Appellate District) concluded that legal defense bills...more
California Court of Appeal Rules Attorney-Client Privilege Exemption Covers Billing Invoices - Billing invoices sent by an attorney to a client are exempt from disclosure under the California Public Records Act, a...more
The California Supreme Court has granted review of a controversial Public Records Act ruling and will decide whether the well-recognized protection for attorney-client privileged documents inadvertently disclosed during the...more
California’s Public Records Act (PRA) law requires public entities to make their public records open for inspection and copying. Environmental practitioners often use PRA requests as a tool to obtain information regarding a...more