In creating the policy, the justices attempted to strike an appropriate balance between the interests of the public, lawyers and litigants who want information and the privacy interests of those involved in court cases.
In announcing the new policy the Justices released a joint statement that outlines the parameters of information that will be available on the Web.
"In adopting this policy, we recognize that the rapid pace of technological development has added a new dimension to efforts by courts and others to balance privacy concerns with principles of open access," the Justices wrote. "The ramifications of publishing information on the Web are qualitatively different from those of making information publicly available at a courthouse. Information published on the Web may be searched electronically, correlated with information from other sources, and downloaded into private databases. For these reasons, we have concluded, at least initially, that an intermediate level of access to court information is appropriate on the Web, one that provides less information than is available at a courthouse."
In order to protect privacy interests, the policy bars publication of individuals' home addresses, telephone numbers, social security numbers and date of birth. It also prohibits revealing the name of specific criminal defendants.
The policy, however, encourages the publication of some information about every case. The Justices stated that:
"Providing case information on the Web will make courts more accessible to the people who use them. Litigants and attorneys will be able to check easily the status and scheduling of cases in which they are involved. This policy will allow the public to learn more about how the judicial system operates by providing basic information about individual cases. The availability of case information on the Web should also reduce the number of telephone calls to the courts seeking such information, thereby freeing court personnel for other tasks."
The policy was based on recommendations from the Trial Court's IT Project Advisory Board and from a Web Advisory Board and on input received from the Chief Justices of the Trial Court and the general public. The Justices stated they expect that the policy will be revised over time as the courts, lawyers and the public gain experience with the Web publication of court data.
The Web policy takes effective immediately. The Trial Court will have until December 31, 2003, to bring any existing systems that provide court case information on the Web or at the courthouse into compliance
