HELENA, Mont. - The Montana Supreme Court is considering restrictions to public access of certain information now available throughout the court system, including a proposition to seal all documents filed in family law cases except for last orders.
Freedom of information advocates say the proposals are unneeded and would run counter to the right-to-know provisions in the commonwealth constitution.
The Supreme Court put the recommendations out for public commentary on Dec. 7. The notice period will go for 90 days.
State Law Librarian Judith Meadows, one of the authors of the proposals, said a modification is required because the court system's existing privacy rules aren't being applied evenly and people not represented by lawyers don't see them.
That means sensitive information about children involved a custody dispute, divorce or another court proceedings could see its way to the Internet, where it could be collected by child predators or be exploited to smashing a child, Meadows said.
"We're trying to restrain the knight in the barn before the threshold is opened," Meadows said.
Technological advances over the preceding decade have created greater approach to court information than ever before, she said.
"The job is, the rules need changing to get up with the technology," she added.
The court system's privacy rules were created by a Supreme Court-appointed Privacy and Access Task Force and sanctioned by the high court in 2007. The rules were adopted in expectation that all records from district courts down to justice courts would one day be available on the Internet.
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