An attorney for Arkansas Business on Tuesday filed a motion to intervene in a lawsuit that blocked the release of an Arkansas Supreme Court justice’s emails and other documents under the state Freedom of Information Act.
Mark Friedman, senior editor of Arkansas Business, requested any and all communications between the former executive director of the Supreme Court Office of Professional Conduct and several people, including Associate Justice Courtney Rae Hudson.
Hudson last week obtained an injunction against the Office of Professional Conduct and the Arkansas Administrative Office of the Courts, which houses the records, to block the documents from being released. The injunction complaint said, “The request is an individualized, targeted request for correspondence of Justice Hudson” that only she can respond to under the Freedom of Information Act.
Circuit Judge Patricia James granted the injunction on Friday “to avoid irreparable harm,” ordering that the records continue to be withheld until a hearing on the matter can be held.
Tuesday’s motion to intervene said that Friedman and Arkansas Business were not made parties to the lawsuit, even though it’s their records request to which Hudson objects.
“Arkansas Business and Mr. Friedman have an interest in the application of the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act to their FOIA request, which is not completely protected by any current party to this action,” the motion said. “Justice Hudson placed the defendants in an awkward position because she is a sitting Justice on the Arkansas Supreme Court, and it is unlikely defendants will protect the interests of Arkansas Business and Mr. Friedman.”
Hudson has argued that the requested records are exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act. But a majority of her fellow justices on the state’s high court voted in favor of releasing the documents.
Mitch Bettis, publisher of Arkansas Business and president of its parent company, Arkansas Business Publishing Group, said in a statement, “It’s unfortunate the public has to work so hard to get documents that belong to the citizens of Arkansas. Our government works best when it’s forthcoming with its citizens and operates in a transparent manner.
“Trust in our public institutions is eroded when public officials actively resist or even look like they are trying to hide things from citizens.”
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