A Pulaski County Circuit Court judge on Friday granted an Arkansas Supreme Court justice’s request to block the release of emails and other documents sought by Arkansas Business under the state’s Freedom of Information Act.
Associate Justice Courtney Rae Hudson sought the injunction against the Supreme Court Office of Professional Conduct and the Arkansas Administrative Office of the Courts, which house the records, after a majority of her fellow justices on the state’s highest court voted in favor of releasing the requested documents.
Courtney Rae Hudson Complai… by Arkansas Business
On Aug. 23, Mark Friedman, senior editor of Arkansas Business, filed a public records request with the two offices and requested any and all communications between Lisa Ballard, the former Office of Professional Conduct executive director, and several people, including Hudson. The OPC handles attorney discipline matters.
“The request is an individualized, targeted request for correspondence of Justice Hudson,” according to the injunction complaint. “As such, the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act dictates that the request must be directed to Justice Hudson so she, and she alone, can respond as appropriate under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.”
Charlene Fleetwood, the acting director of the OPC, planned to tell Friedman that his request for the communication was exempt.
“Upon learning of Fleetwood’s position that the information requested was exempt from disclosure, five Supreme Court Justices voted to overrule Fleetwood’s position and have any materials found be produced including correspondence of Justice Hudson,” the filing said. “Like Fleetwood, these five Supreme Court justices – 5 – are not custodians of the requested documents and do not have authority to turn them over pursuant to FOIA.”
But Hudson argued that the OPC and the Administrative Office of the Courts are not the custodian of the records and the requested records are exempt from the FOI. The Arkansas Attorney General’s Office wrote a memo agreeing with Hudson’s position.
Arkansas Attorney General’s Office Memo by Arkansas Business on Scribd
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.
A hearing hadn’t been scheduled as of Friday afternoon.
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