Opinion
Opinion By: Jack Conway, Attorney General; Michelle D. Harrison, Assistant Attorney General
Open Records Decision
The question presented in this appeal is whether the Bullitt Circuit Court Clerk violated the Kentucky Open Records Act in failing to issue a timely written response upon receipt of Garth McWilliams' December 20, 2012, request for a copy of "a docket sheet under Case Number 07-F-00154 from the Bullitt District Court under the Kentucky Open Records Act. . . . all records and the history of this case." Because records in the custody of district and circuit court clerks are properly characterized as court records, to which the Open Records Act does not apply, the Attorney General has long recognized that neither district nor circuit court clerks are subject to the provisions of the Open Records Act; accordingly, the Bullitt Circuit Court Clerk cannot be said to have violated the Act relative to Mr. McWilliams' request. 1 The analysis contained in 98-ORD-6, a copy of which is attached hereto and incorporated by reference, is controlling on this issue. "Simply stated, disputes relating to access to court records must be resolved by the court." 98-ORD-6, p. 2.
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 proceeding.
Distributed to:
Garth McWilliams,Paulita Keith
Footnotes
Footnotes