Sealed Court Scanned Documents Inadvertently Disclosed

(6-4-04). Clerk Releases Sealed Documents. "Sarasota County Clerk Karen Rushing confirmed Thursday that a deputy clerk erroneously released paperwork that was under a judge's seal in the first-degree murder case of Joseph P. Smith. . . Rushing said a member of the news media got the records from a deputy clerk on Wednesday. "He went up to a the clerk and said, 'I can't open this, can you get it for me?' and the clerk inadvertently gave it out," Rushing said. According to Rushing, it doesn't appear the deputy clerk intentionally leaked the information and it was "just a mistake." "We're looking into why it happened in the first place," Rushing said. "Whether she overlooked it or whether her PC (personal computer) didn't let her know it was sealed." Rushing said the sealed documents are not available from any of her office's public terminals."

Comment: Whether in your office, client's or in other location ensure that your electronic discovery is properly secured.