The Free Press reports on the recent Michigan Court of Appeals decision sealing Monaghan's personal notes in the Ave Maria Law faculty lawsuit. (Judges Richard Bandstra, Joel Hoekstra, and Jane Beckering made up the 3-judge panel.) The only reason given by the Court is that it was for "good cause." Monaghan's attorney, Karl Fink, argued in favor of sealing because the notes "detailed not only Monaghan's impressions and thoughts for various public events he attends, but also his relationships with others, who are not parties to this litigation, and the events that they attend, and, potentially, their political and religious associations."

The Free Press thinks the ruling is outrageous:

But Herschel Fink, a prominent First Amendment lawyer who represents the Free Press in the text messaging case, called the order outrageous. And I'm as curious as he is to know why the court was willing to ignore its own rules (and the public interest in court proceedings) to shield a Republican VIP from embarrassment.

HT: AveWatch

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