CJ Griffin Wins Appeal for Libertarians for Transparent Government Invalidating GRC Regulation in Violation of OPRA

CJ Griffin, partner and director of the Justice Gary S. Stein Public Interest Center, was recently featured and quoted in a New Jersey Law Journal Article titled, “Appellate Division Strikes Down Government Records Council's Regulation During Pending Denial-of-Access Complaint.” The article discusses the win in an appeal for Libertarians for Transparent Government, who were represented by Griffin. The appeal invalidated a provision adopted by the Government Records Council that said submissions made in denial-of-access complaints are not subject to the Open Public Records Act.

In 2022, the GRC adopted a provision that said that all submissions made to the council during the adjudication of a denial-of-access complaint under OPRA, “shall not be considered government records subject to public access pursuant to” OPRA “during the pendency of the adjudication,”

CJ Griffin, on behalf of Libertarians for Transparent Government, filed suit against the GRC, challenging the validity of the regulation, contending that it is “irrational” for the GRC to exempt submissions from public access in a proceeding that involves a public agency’s denial of access to government records under OPRA.

“It’s sad that the GRC—an agency that should be the poster child for transparency—even attempted to make itself a secret tribunal, so we are thrilled the Appellate Division struck down this regulation. Striking down this decision today is even more important than when we filed the challenge more than a year ago. Because the Legislature recently gutted OPRA over the will of the people, there will be more and more people filing pro se denial of access complaints in the GRC because they cannot find lawyers to represent them on a contingency basis anymore,” said Griffin.

In the present matter before the appellate court, Griffin said that the regulation seemed to be issued in response to a comptroller report that found it took the council almost two years to adjudicate a complaint.

“Rather than speeding up their processes, the GRC chose secrecy to make it harder to track their adjudication process,” Griffin said. “Today’s decision ensures that the public can continue to scrutinize the GRC, as well as hold them accountable to the new requirement that they resolve complaints within 90 days.”

To read the full article in the New Jersey Law Journal, click here.

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