No Sealing of Information in Eviction Proceedings

The litigants within the eviction continuing sought to defend a whole courtroom file from public disclosure. They argued a landlord filed an eviction motion after agreeing not to take action and that the owner acquired the rental funds earlier than the motion was filed. So the litigants argued that public disclosure of the eviction motion was doubtlessly defamatory and would have an effect on the tenants’ creditworthiness. Citing Florida Rule of Normal Observe and Judicial Administration Rule 2.420(c)(9)(A)(vi) (2022), the county courtroom accepted these causes as a foundation to seal parts of the courtroom file….

There’s a presumption that courtroom information are open to the general public and “[e]very particular person has the fitting to examine or copy any public document made or acquired in reference to the official enterprise of any public physique … besides with respect to data exempted pursuant to this part or particularly made confidential by this Structure.” The judicial department is “particularly embody[d]” on this provision, Fla. R. Gen. Prac. & Jud. Admin. Rule 2.420(a) gives that “[t]he public shall have entry to all data of the judicial department of presidency, besides” as supplied in Rule 2.420….

Rule 2.420(c)(9)(A)(vi) permits a courtroom to defend a continuing or document from the general public when confidentiality is required to “keep away from substantial harm to a celebration by disclosure of issues protected by a standard legislation or privateness proper not usually inherent within the particular sort of continuing sought to be closed.” However “litigants can not have an affordable expectation of privateness with regard to issues which can be inherent to their civil proceedings.” Nor can the settlement of all litigants justify shielding a judicial document from public view.

On this case, the names of litigants are issues inherent to the civil continuing. The comprehensible want of these litigants to defend their names from public disclosure can not justify doing so. Consequently, and absent another legitimate foundation to defend the data from disclosure, the names can’t be hidden from public view.

For the same determination from Washington, see right here.