Open records and meetings research tools now and then!
The Kentucky Open Government Coalition's Sunshine Law Library continues to expand opportunities for free online research of opinions & decisions of the Kentucky Attorney General dating back to 1977, as well as opinions of the courts, statutes, and analysis.
New features have been added since the coalition introduced this remarkable research tool, including
Status Check.
https://kyopengov.org/blog/introducing-status-check-sunshine-library
This feature enables the user to determine if the opinion or decision s/he is reviewing is still "good law," or if it has been modified, withdrawn, or overruled by subsequent developments in the law. This includes revisions in the statutes themselves or legal precedent reinterpreting the law or rejecting the Attorney General's interpretation.
The coalition encourages users to experiment with the Sunshine Law Library. Frame a "search" for opinions, decisions, etc., as you would an internet search -- narrow enough that the search does not include too much but broad enough that it does not include too little.
Don't be discouraged by a few false starts. The tools are now available. A determined user will soon master them.
We are hopeful that the library will level the playing field by affording the public access to governing laws, cases, and administrative (Attorney General's) rulings that were previously only accessible to public agencies and law firms.
(Pictured below, the Attorney General's Card File -- containing thousands of "syllabus" cards prepared by assistant attorneys general to facilitate (arduous) manual legal research with the goal of ensuring consistency and uniformity in interpretation -- juxtaposed with the Kentucky Sunshine Law Library -- curated by coalition co-director Scott Horn to facilitate free automated legal research with a few key strokes.)
