Chattanooga Archives - Page 6 of 6 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

23 May, 2014

Hamilton County judges say privacy of job applicants outweighs Public Records Act

By Deborah Fisher|2014-05-23T15:10:53-05:00May 23, 2014|Categories: state records|Tags: Chancellor Frank Brown, Chancellor Jeffrey Atherton, Chattanooga, open records, Times Free Press|0 Comments

The Chattanooga Times Free Press reports today about an unusual move by two Hamilton County judges to seal information about applicants to that county's Clerk and Master position, issuing an order without any pending litigation before their courts. The newspaper had requested a list of applicants to the $103,795 job, which is appointed by the judges as one of their administrative duties. At first, one of the judges, Chancellor W. Frank Brown, responded to the request saying the court does not believe the public has a right to names, and media should offer the same confidentiality to candidates for the clerk and master post that it gives to victims of [...]

3 Mar, 2014

Chattanooga should not appeal open records ruling

By Deborah Fisher|2018-11-16T15:13:04-06:00March 3, 2014|Categories: public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: attorneys' fees, Chattanooga, litigation|0 Comments

The Open Records Act in Tennessee has bite. Because the city of Chattanooga was found to be willful and dishonest in denying public records to citizen Rebecca Little, an appeals court said it must pay her attorneys’ fees and costs: $71,343. Citizens shouldn’t have to sue to get their local government to follow the law. Such a case is never easy. It took three years. The city appealed one decision to the Tennessee Supreme Court, which declined to hear it. The city could try again over the latest Appeals Court ruling on the amount of fees, further dragging out the case, creating more costs for both sides. It has until [...]

20 Feb, 2014

Rebecca Little discusses what led to her public records lawsuit

By Deborah Fisher|2018-11-16T15:12:28-06:00February 20, 2014|Categories: public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: attorneys' fees, Chancellor Frank Brown, Chattanooga, litigation|0 Comments

Victors in a public records lawsuit: The Little family owns Tennessee RiverPlace, a bed and breakfast in Lookout Valley in Chattanooga. Rebecca Little won a public records lawsuit with the city, but the family continues to fight over services Chattanooga promised during annexation in the 1970s but hasn't delivered. I talked with Rebecca Little this morning about her victory at the appeals court last week in her public records lawsuit. The appeals court on Friday overturned Hamilton County Chancellor W. Frank Brown in Little's public records case against the city of Chattanooga – ruling that the city must reimburse Little $71,343 in attorney fees and other costs to [...]

20 Feb, 2014

Chattanooga must pay woman $71K for attorney fees in public records lawsuit
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Chattanooga must pay woman $71K for attorney fees in public records lawsuit

public records lawsuits Tennessee

Chattanooga must pay woman $71K for attorney fees in public records lawsuit

By Deborah Fisher|2018-11-16T15:08:52-06:00February 20, 2014|Categories: public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: attorneys' fees, Chancellor Frank Brown, Chattanooga, Grant Konvalinka & Harrison, John Anderson, litigation|1 Comment

Rebecca Little sued the city of Chattanooga after it didn't respond to her public records request as required by state law. She was trying to find out the progress of services promised for an annexed area. An appeals court says the city owes her $71K in attorney's fees because it was "willful" in not following the state's Open Records Act. A Tennessee appeals court last week sent a strong message in a public records lawsuit against the city of Chattanooga, ordering the trial court to award the full $71,343 in attorney fees and expenses incurred by the citizen who brought the case. It was the second [...]