settlement agreements Archives - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

22 May, 2019

2019 Legislative Report: New exemptions to Public Records Act, and bills that failed or were delayed

By Deborah Fisher|2021-10-14T14:32:58-05:00May 22, 2019|Categories: economic development, exemptions, Legislature, Public Records|Tags: 911 calls, anti-slapp, college sports, confidentiality agreements, economic development, harassment, jail booking mug shots, juvenile court records, meeting agendas, photos of public records, school bus video, settlement agreements, sexual harassment, tax credits, Tennessee State Museum, trade secrets, traffic accident reports|0 Comments

Following is a list of new public records exemptions and other public record laws passed by the 111th General Assembly, plus some proposals that failed or were delayed until next year. TCOG 2019 Legislative Report (If you would like to print this, here is the legislative report in PDF format without photos.) The new exemptions add to a list that is nearing 600. Citizens can expect some bills related to public records to re-emerge when the Legislature reconvenes Jan. 14, 2020. One of the more significant bills that was delayed, but attracted a lot of attention late in the session, would create a process for an injunction against a public [...]

Hamilton County School Board, Tennessee Risk Management Trust miss point on confidentiality agreement

By Deborah Fisher|2019-05-19T10:07:30-05:00May 18, 2019|Categories: Public Records, schools|Tags: confidentiality agreements, Hamilton County Board of Education, Office of Open Records Counsel, settlement agreements, Tennessee Risk Management Trust|0 Comments

The Hamilton County School Board's attorney on Wednesday finally revealed to school board members the settlement payout amount of $750,000 to a student sexually assaulted during a basketball tournament trip. Board attorney Scott Bennett has indicated that this amount was previously confidential because its insurer had entered into a confidentiality agreement with the student and his family. There is still another student with whom the school board's insurer reached a settlement payout. Bennett has not released that amount. The explanation is that the settlement is under seal in federal court. The Tennessee Attorney General and the Office of Open Records Counsel have both weighed in on the matter — and [...]

Proposed bills seek to clarify, change law related to government settlement agreements

By Deborah Fisher|2019-02-10T13:59:55-06:00February 10, 2019|Categories: Legislature|Tags: settlement agreements, State Rep. Bill Beck, State Rep. Doc Kumar, State Rep. Jeremy Faison, State Sen. Dolores Gresham, State Sen. Todd Gardenhire|0 Comments

A collection of bills introduced in the Tennessee General Assembly are aimed at clarifying or changing parts of the law surrounding government settlement agreements. Government entities are prohibited from entering into confidential settlement agreements. The Court of Appeals has said that “a governmental entity cannot enter into confidentiality agreements with regard to public records. The idea of entering into confidentiality agreements with respect to public records is repugnant to and would thwart the purpose of the (Tennessee Public Records) Act." (Contemporary Media v. City of Memphis, 1999.) Lawmakers have filed at least three separate sets of bills: State Sen. Dolores Gresham, R-Somerville. Sen. Dolores Gresham, R-Somerville, and Rep. [...]