In re Elec. Pub. Access Fees

Full title: IN RE EXEMPTION OF ELECTRONIC PUBLIC ACCESS FEES

Court: United States District Court, W.D. North Carolina

Date published: Jan 11, 2024

1:23-MC-15 (W.D.N.C. Jan. 11, 2024)

Opinion

1:23-MC-15

01-11-2024

IN RE EXEMPTION OF ELECTRONIC PUBLIC ACCESS FEES

MARTIN REIDINGER, CHIEF U.S. DISTRICT JUDGE

ORDER

MARTIN REIDINGER, CHIEF U.S. DISTRICT JUDGE

This matter is before the Court upon application and request by Ms. Jett Pettus for exemption from the fees imposed by the Electronic Public Access fee schedule adopted by the Judicial Conference of the United States Courts.

The Court finds that Ms. Pettus is a Ph.D student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and is requesting this exemption to access cases to conduct research for a doctoral thesis seeking to quantify the relationship between prison inmate suits challenging prison conditions and the quality of prison facilities. She is seeking to examine prisoner complaints and final order in cases filed since 1988 under the following natures of suit: 510, 530, 535,540, 550 and 555. She qualifies for an exemption, and one is needed to avoid unreasonable burden and promote public access. Ms. Pettus shall be exempt from the payment of fees for access via PACER to the electronic case files maintained in this Court, to the extent such use is incurred in the course of this limited request. She shall not be exempt from the payment of fees incurred in connection with other uses of the PACER system in this court. Additionally, the following limitations apply:

1. This fee exemption applies only to Ms. Pettus and is valid only for the purposes stated above.

2. This fee exemption applies only to the electronic files of this Court that are available through the PACER system.

3. By accepting this exemption, Ms. Pettus agrees not to sell for profit any data obtained because of receiving this exemption.

4. Ms. Pettus is prohibited from transferring any data obtained because of receiving this exemption, including redistribution via internet-based databases; and

5. This exemption is authorized until December 31, 2024.

This exemption may be revoked at the discretion of the Court at any time. Pursuant to Judicial Conference policy, the Clerk shall review the usage of the account as part of the Court financial audit process. The Clerk is DIRECTED to provide a copy of this Order to the PACER Service Center and Ms. Pettus.