Rule 3 - Access to Judiciary Records Generally; Records Custodian(a)General Policy. Except as provided in these rules or in statute, the public may inspect or copy all judicial-branch case and administrative records.(b)Access. The rules cover the complementary responsibilities to provide public and special access to case and administrative records and to protect the confidentiality of records where such confidentiality is required by statute, rule, or court order. For case records, the rules recognize that it is the responsibility of both filers of case records and the Judiciary to protect confidentiality and privacy where public access is restricted by such requirements. The Judiciary will take reasonable steps to comply with these rules.(c)Custodians of Judicial Records. The Court Administrator is the custodian of judicial-branch paper and electronic administrative records and electronic case records. The Court Administrator is also the custodian of paper case records of adjudicatory bodies other than courts or the judicial bureau, such as hearing panels of the Professional Responsibility Board, the Judicial Conduct Board, and the Character and Fitness Committee. The Court Administrator may delegate responsibility as the record custodian in whole or in part to one or more persons in the Office of the Court Administrator. The superior court clerk in a unit or division is the custodian of the paper case records of that court or those courts, unless the record is in the Vermont State Archives. The Deputy Clerk of the Supreme Court is the custodian of the paper records of the Supreme Court. The clerk of the judicial bureau is the custodian of the paper case records of the bureau.The custodian for paper records for the rules advisory committees appointed by the Supreme Court is the Deputy Clerk of the Supreme Court. For all other judiciary committees, the custodian of records is the Court Administrator or designee. Amended May 1, 2019, eff. 7/1/2019.Reporter's Notes
Rule 3(a) is from former Rule 4.
Rule 3(b) sets out the complementary responsibilities to provide public access to court records and to deny public access to records that are not accessible as provided by a statute or court rule, including these rules. It further sets out the joint responsibility on filers and the Judiciary to protect confidentiality and privacy.
Rule 3(c) establishes who is the record custodian for each of the types of records held by the Judiciary. As provided in Rule 2, the record custodian is responsible for the safekeeping of the record. The record custodian is also responsible for implementing the policies in these rules for records under the custodian's control. In general, the Court Administrator is the record custodian with respect to all electronic case records irrespective of the venue of the case in which the record is filed. Also, in general, the record custodian for paper records is the holder of the paper or in the case of archived records, the person with whom the record was originally filed unless the record is in the Vermont State Archives.