Commonwealth Court orders Senate to disclose client names and descriptions of services
From the PNA Legal Update
Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association
The Commonwealth Court ordered the Senate to disclose the names of clients who received Senate-financed legal services, as well as the descriptions of legal services, in legal invoices.
The Senate had argued initially that the information was protected by the attorney-client privilege, but that claim was rejected by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
On remand, the Commonwealth Court also rejected the Senate’s claims that the attorney work-product doctrine, the grand jury secrecy rule and the criminal investigation exemption of the Right to Know Law prohibited public access.
The Associated Press sought legal invoices dating back to 2009 related to former Sen. Robert Mellow. The Senate provided records, but redacted the names of those who received legal services as well as the general descriptions of services rendered.
The Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association provides member news organizations with updates on government access issues.
