Abstract
In Society of Professional Journalists v. Briggs, the United States District Court for the District of Utah found a constitutional right of public access to a confidential settlement agreement that resolved claims of alleged wrongdoing by county officials. The decision by Judge J. Thomas Greene is the first time a court has extended the constitutional right of access to a civil settlement agreement. The right of access found by Judge Greene is rooted in a line of United States Supreme Court cases beginning with Richmond Newspapers, Inc. v. Virginia. In Richmond Newspapers, the Court held that a right of public access to criminal trials is implicit in the first amendment. Some commentators believed Richmond Newspapers would usher in a constitutionally based "right to know." Others believed the right of access would be limited to the criminal courtroom. Nearly ten years later, the Supreme Court has yet to recognize explicitly a right of access outside criminal proceedings. Since Richmond Newspapers, however, state and lower federal courts have applied competing standards to find a public right of access in an increasing number of contexts. Judge Greene's opinion in Society of Professional Journalists continues this expansion by finding a constitutional right of access to settlement agreements involving alleged wrongdoing by public officials.
Recommended Citation
Hunt, Jeffrey J.
(1989)
"Society of Professional Journalists v. Briggs: Toward a Deferential Balancing Test for the Right of Access,"
Utah Law Review: Vol. 1989:
No.
3, Article 6.
Available at:
https://dc.law.utah.edu/ulr/vol1989/iss3/6