MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - The Vermont attorney general’s office is claiming broad exemption from state public records laws, arguing in court that public disclosures would violate professional ethics rules for lawyers working for the office.
The Burlington Free Press reports (https://bfpne.ws/2oHtSTJ) that Chief Assistant Attorney General William Griffin argued that the office’s work is generally exempt from state public records laws, unlike other state agencies. Deputy Attorney General Joshua Diamond, who spoke on behalf of the office, said the office regularly produces documents for public inspection and that non-legal documents such as budgets and expense records would be public records.
The judge has not yet made a ruling on the case, which began when the state office denied a public records request from the Energy and Environment Legal Institute.
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Information from: The Burlington Free Press, https://www.burlingtonfreepress.com
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