Videos of court proceeding are part of the judicial functions of a court (2023-06-22)

Summary

This is a published case summary of a Freedom of Information (FOI) decision by the Cayman Islands Ombudsman, not a rule or regulatory instrument. It records a preliminary appeal decision finding that video recordings of court proceedings fall outside the scope of the FOI Law because they relate to the judicial functions of a court.

• Facts: An applicant sought copies of video recordings of court proceedings he was involved in from the Judicial Administration, which refused access on the basis that they were part of judicial functions and thus outside FOIA.
• Ombudsman's finding: The Ombudsman agreed that the recordings were records of court proceedings pertaining to judicial functions, so the FOIA did not apply to them.
• Additional concern: The Ombudsman noted that some recordings had apparently been deleted after the FOI request was made, and recommended better records management and internal procedures for placing a legal hold on requested records scheduled for destruction.

The decision is informative rather than binding rule-making: it clarifies how the judicial functions exemption under the FOI Law applies to court video recordings and signals the Ombudsman's expectation that public authorities implement legal-hold procedures once an FOI request is made.

Applies to

public authorities subject to the Freedom of Information Law, Judicial Administration