Opinion
Opinion By: Albert B. Chandler III, Attorney General; Amye L. Bensenhaver, Assistant Attorney General
Open Records Decision
This matter having been presented to the Attorney General in an open records appeal, and the Attorney General being sufficiently advised, we find that the Simpson District Court Clerk is not bound by the provisions of the Kentucky Open Records Act, and therefore did not violate the Act in the disposition of Stacey Dillingham's request for a copy of "Doctor Carter Moore's will which should have been probated in the summer of 1979." We believe that 98-ORD-6, a copy of which is attached hereto and incorporated by reference, is controlling notwithstanding the fact that it relates to criminal records in the custody of the circuit court clerk inasmuch as the courts have determined that all court records are exclusively governed by the courts themselves.
A party aggrieved by this decision may appeal it by initiating action in the appropriate circuit court pursuant to KRS 61.880(5) and KRS 61.882. Pursuant to KRS 61.880(3), the Attorney General should be notified of any action in circuit court, but should not be named as a party in that action or in any subsequent proceedings.
Distributed to:
Stacey DillinghamBox 5451Frankfort, KY 40602
Jan J. MurphreeDistrict Court ClerkSimpson Co. CourthouseP.O. Box 261Franklin, KY 42135-0261
Sara DentStaff AttorneyAdministrative Office of the Courts100 Millcreek ParkFrankfort, KY 40601