By Elizabeth Dinan
Portsmouth Herald
The New Hampshire Supreme Court on Wednesday will hear arguments from three entities, including the Portsmouth Herald, all seeking to obtain documents about public employees and/or entities.
Multiple briefs and replies have been filed with the state’s highest court for the three unrelated cases with a common goal under the Right-to-Know law. When oral arguments commence Nov. 20, the Supreme Court justices will have read all the filings, they’ll ask hypothetical questions, then publish opinions at a later date.
“These cases dealing with how to interpret the ‘internal personnel practices’ exemption are incredibly important for government accountability in New Hampshire,” said Gilles Bissonnette, attorney for the state chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, which is involved in two of the cases. “How this exemption is currently interpreted has enabled government agencies like Salem, Portsmouth, the Concord School District, and others to hide volumes of information concerning government employees, including potential misconduct, that would allow the public to hold the government accountable.
Read the full story in the Portsmouth Herald.
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