The Innocence Project, Inc. v. National Museum of Health and Medicine

Background

On February 17, 2023, The Innocence Project filed an unopposed motion asking the court to unseal every filing previously submitted under seal and direct the Clerk of Court to place those filings on the public docket.

Many of the filings had been sealed, in whole or in part, to protect the identities of the author and subject of a report covered by a Privacy Act Order and Protective Order. After those filings were submitted, the court lifted the protective order as to the report in full, and the report became public. The Innocence Project argued that there was therefore no longer an interest in protecting the confidentiality of the report’s author, subject, or detailed contents.

Court’s Analysis

The court held that the sealed filings were subject to the common-law right of public access because they were relevant to the court’s judicial functions and useful in the judicial process. The filings had been submitted to help the court determine whether the Privacy Act governed materials from an archive maintained at the National Museum of Health and Medicine and, if so, whether the court could order disclosure under the statute’s provision allowing disclosure pursuant to a court order, 5 U.S.C. § 552a(b)(11).

The court also stated that the filings had been used to determine the plaintiff’s substantive legal rights to the report, creating a strong presumption of public access. Because the report was already public, the court found that privacy interests opposing disclosure were minimal.

Disposition

Judge Lewis J. Liman granted the plaintiff’s request. The Clerk of Court was directed to place all previously sealed filings in the case on the public docket.