TOPEKA - The House Judiciary Committee will hold hearings Monday, February 18th on HB 2825. The measure was introduced by Rep. Lance Kinzer (R-Olathe) because of concern over privately conducted Kansas Supreme Court cases such as Planned Parenthood v. Phill Kline.
HB 2825 limits the circumstances under which courts can hold close hearings and have pleading filed under seal.
“The public has a fundamental interest in all cases that are submitted to a court for resolution,” said Kinzer. “Restricting media coverage and other public access to court proceedings should only be allowed under very rare circumstances.”
Under HB 2825, a court could not close a hearing or allow pleadings to be filed under seal unless it first made a finding on the record that an identified safety, property or privacy interest predominates the case and outweighs the strong public interest in access to the court record and proceedings.
“It is an unfortunate reality today that many of the most important public policy issues facing our State are being decided by courts. As such it is more important than ever that out judicial process is open and accessible. HB 2825 would be one step in that direction,” said Rep. Kinzer.
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