It is the policy of the office of Maryellen O'Shaughnessy, Clerk of the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas and Court of Appeals for the Tenth Appellate District of Ohio, to encourage and facilitate open, equal access to the public records entrusted to the office. Openness leads to a better informed citizenry. Making public information readily accessible is good policy that promotes transparency and fosters better government. This office will adhere to Ohio's public records laws in a fashion consistent with the Rules of Superintendence for the Courts of Ohio, Ohio Rules of Procedure, and the local Rules of Practice adopted by the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas and the Tenth District Court of Appeals.
This office recognizes a need to balance the public's right to access against the expectations of individual citizens to privacy. In administering this public records policy, the office of the Clerk will not knowingly disclose, or publish on the internet, private information deemed protected under the laws of the State of Ohio or of the United States of America as those laws may be from time-to-time revised. Presently, as of September 29, 2007, we will not knowingly disclose or publish any person's: (a) social security number or other federal tax identification number; (b) driver's license number or state identification number, or (c) banking or other financial account numbers. Parties and their representatives are encouraged to refrain from including such protected private information in new filings.
Exceptions to openness, that is, records of parts thereof deemed by law not to be public records subject to disclosure are detailed in External linkORC §149.43 of the External linkOhio Revised Code. In the spirit of our policy to encourage and facilitate open, equal access, exceptions to openness will be construed in their narrowest sense. Any withholding of public records or redaction of portions of public records in response to an otherwise valid request will be accompanied by an explanation, including legal authority, as outlined in the Ohio Revised Code. If a request for inspection and copies of public records is in writing, our response and our explanation, if any, for less than full disclosure will also be in writing.