The New Jersey Supreme Court issued an order today dismissing an appeal in the Rise Against Hate v. Cherry Hill et al., case. The Court had originally granted certification in the matter, which is now dismissing the case after finding certification was improvidently granted.
At issue in the case is whether members of the public have an objectively reasonable expectation in the privacy of their email addresses sufficient to protect them from disclosure under the Open Public Records Act (OPRA).
The Appellate Division concluded that members of the public who submit their email addresses to receive electronic newsletters and notices from a municipality have an objectively reasonable expectation that their email addresses will not be disclosed to a non-government organization that intends to send unsolicited emails to them to further the organization's political and social objectives.
The Supreme Court’s action to dismiss the case leaves the Appellate Division holding in place. No additional reasoning was provided with the Court’s order, as is typical whenever the Court dismisses a case after finding certification was improvidently granted. It is possible that the Court took this action considering the recent reforms to OPRA which were recently adopted clarifying the privacy provisions within the law.
The League would like to thank Carl Woodward, Esq., of Carella, Byrne, Cecchi, Olstein, Brody & Agnello, P.A. in Roseland for representing the League as amicus in this matter.
Records custodians are encouraged to review the Appellate Division’s decision with their municipal attorney for further information.
Contact: Frank Marshall, Esq., Associate General Counsel, fmarshall@njlm.org, 609-695-3481, x137.