Vt. Pub. Access Ct. R. 4

As amended through November 4, 2024

Rule 4 - Means of Access

(a) Physical Case Records. Public access to physical case records is provided by request to the custodian in the court or office where the record was filed. If the record is in the Vermont State Archives, public access is provided by request to that agency.

(b)Electronic Case Records. Public access to electronic case records is provided for individual cases at display terminals located in courthouses and Judiciary offices as determined by the Court Administrator.

(1)Public Access Locations. Each unit that has electronic filing will have at least one public access location. The terminals will provide access to all publicly accessible case records of all courts and adjudicative bodies irrespective of the venue of the proceeding.

(2)Remote Access. Remote access may be provided by the Court Administrator to publicly accessible case records in cases from the civil and environmental divisions, the judicial bureau, and judiciary adjudicative bodies other than courts. Remote access may also be provided to publicly accessible case records in cases in the Supreme Court. Remote access may not be provided to records of the criminal, family, or probate divisions, except as authorized by statute.

(c)Administrative Records. The Court Administrator will determine the means of access to judicial-branch paper and electronic administrative records.

Vt. Pub. Access Ct. R. 4

Amended May 1, 2019, eff. 7/1/2019.

Reporter's Notes

Rule 4 provides the means of access to judicial case and administrative records, whether in paper or electronic form. The method of public access to case records was covered in former Rule 6(f). The subject of public access to electronic case records was covered in Rule 3 of the Rules Governing Dissemination of Electronic Case Records, now repealed. Most of the content of this rule is new.

In general, the record custodian is responsible for providing public access pursuant to this rule. See Rule 3(c). To access a paper record, a person must request access from the record custodian. A request to the record custodian is necessary even if the record has been sent to the State Records Center and is no longer in the possession of the record custodian. The record custodian determines whether the record is publicly accessible under these rules.

The record custodian for electronic case records is the Court Administrator. Rule 3(c). Rule 4 sets forth the basic method of providing public access to electronic case records-by display terminals in courthouses and judiciary offices. At least one courthouse or judiciary office location in each unit that has electronic filing must provide a terminal or terminals for this purpose. Each temiinal must provide statewide access to case records that are accessible to the public for all types of court proceedings and other judiciary adjudicative bodies. This method of providing public access to judicial case records is consistent with 12 V.S.A. § 5(a), which prohibits the Supreme Court from providing "public access via the internet to criminal or family case records." The display terminals will display records from files in judiciary computers and use the judiciary's network to retrieve the electronic records. Retrieval will not involve use of the internet. Reference in paragraph 4(b) to access "for individual cases at display terminals" is intended to clarify that "bulk access" or "data mining" of electronic case records is not authorized by the rules. Reference to "may" in paragraph 4(b)(2) is not intended to suggest that the Court Administrator may deny access on an ad hoc basis, but that further access may be provided as technology and resources allow.

The Court Administrator may determine the means of providing public access to accessible administrative records, consistent with the provisions of the Public Records Act. Electronic access to administrative records is not a current component of the judiciary's electronic case management system. Technological development of the electronic case management system may enable such access in the future. Rule 3(c) authorizes the Court Administrator to determine the means of access to both paper and electronic administrative records.

The rule also addresses the ability to allow remote access to case records. Remote access uses the internet to allow a person to access judiciary records from a location outside of judiciary facilities. 12 V.S.A. § 5(a) prohibits remote access to family and criminal case records unless one of two exceptions apply. See 12 V.S.A. § 5(a), (b)(2). These are addressed in Rule 5(e) and (f). This rule adds probate case records to the prohibition on remote access because the privacy issues for these records are like those for family case records. Developments in technology, coupled with statutory amendments, may lead to more expansive remote access. However, at present, such access is limited to the categories of cases specified in Rule 4(b)(2).

In instances not prohibited by the statute or this rule, the Court Administrator may provide remote access.

Remote access may be given to case records of the Supreme Court, even if remote access to the underlying trial court case would be prohibited by 12 V.S.A. § 5(a). This is because 12 V.S.A. § 5(b)(3) allows remote access to briefs and printed cases in appeals to the Supreme Court without limitation by type of case. Remote access to records in cases of original jurisdiction in the Supreme Court are authorized because these are civil cases.