BRV, INC. v. Superior Court

Californians have a constitutional right to access the records of their public agencies. They have a strong interest in knowing how government officials conduct public business, particularly when allegations of malfeasance by public officers are raised.

Here, a school district’s board of education hired an investigator to prepare a report analyzing allegations of misconduct by the district’s superintendent. Portions of the report were released to a newspaper by persons the investigator had interviewed.

After receiving the full report in confidence, the board of education entered into an agreement with the superintendent accepting his resignation in exchange for terms of payment and a promise to keep the report confidential. The public and the media smelled a “sweetheart deal” and demanded the board release the report. The board refused, and the trial court upheld the board’s decision.

We must determine whether the California Public Records Act (Gov. Code, § 6250 et seq.; Public Records Act or the Act) requires the report to be released or allows it to remain confidential. Under the circumstances presented here, we conclude the Public Records Act requires disclosure,…