Open Government Laws

Public records

The Public Records Act requires state agencies and local governments to promptly turn over documents to the public upon request (with limited exceptions). While many government agencies do a fairly good job providing public records, agencies or government officials often resist disclosure when the documents embarrass them or subject them to liability. Allied Law Group’s principal attorneys, Michele Earl-Hubbard and Greg Overstreet, are pehaps the best-known Public Records Act attorneys in the state. The firm assists clients:

• Formulating records requests.
• Assessing the legal validity of agency responses to requests.
• Working to informally and quickly resolve disputes with agencies.
• Sending demand letters to obtain records.
• Filing suit against agencies to obtain records.

Additional public records services include:

• Anonymous requests. Some clients want to maintain anonymity when requesting records to avoid tipping off the agency. For these clients, Allied Law Group can make public records requests under its name. The client’s identity would only be revealed if a suit is later filed.

Open Public Meeting Act

The Open Public Meetings Act requires the decision making bodies of local governments and some state agencies to hold open public meetings (in most cases), provide notice, and follow specific open-meetings procedures when making decisions for the agencies. Media clients in particular seek access to meetings of government bodies such as school boards or city councils to cover important news stories. Allied Law Group's attorneys are very experienced with the Open Public Meeting Act.

Access to courts

To report important stories to the public, media clients need access to court proceedings such as attending trials and photographing and filming the proceedings. The constitution and court rules require courts to allow public access to many court proceedings and records, and allow the media the right to film and televise some proceedings. Allied Law Group also represents clients in cases to unseal court files. Our attorneys have significant court access experience.

Media Law

This field covers defamation and related claims such as invasion of privacy, the First Amendment, and copyright, trademark and trade dress law. Media law clients typically need the firm to defend against claims or review stories, books or films in advance to prevent liability. Michele Earl-Hubbard is very experienced in this field and has served numerous news and entertainment media clients. For her media-law clients, she provides pre-publication review and advice and defends claims.

Regulatory Litigation and Legislation

Regulatory litigation

When a trade association or business is adversely affected by a potentially unlawful regulation and wants to challenge it in court, there are few attorneys who know how to win these difficult cases. Adding to the client’s problem is the fact that many law firms represent some government agencies, which can create conflicts of interest. Regulatory litigation often involves simultaneous leagal, public policy, and public relations issues, but few attorneys understand the interplay between them. Greg Overstreet is one of the most experienced regulatory litigators in the state and has built up a track record of successfully representing clients in these challenging cases.

Legal work for lobbyists

Lobbying often involves significant legal analysis of current law and the impact of proposed laws. Sometimes lobbyists confront a legal issue outside their fields of expertise. Allied Law Group serves as the “lobbyist's lawyers,” drafting legislation and preparing legal analysis for lobbyists and their clients. Greg Overstreet was a lobbyist for the Attorney General's Office and, before that, for the largest trade association in the state. Allied Law Group's Olympia office—which is across the street from the Capitol—has extensive contacts in the lobbying, legislative, and agency arenas allowing us to solve legal problems for lobbyists and their clients.

Lobbying

Allied Law Group will provide lobbying services for clients in special circumstances.

Other Services

Mediations and arbitrations

Many disputes are now settled outside of court because mediation and arbitration are quicker and cheaper. Recognized as knowledgeable and experienced in open-government and media law, Allied Law Group is uniquely qualified to mediate and arbitrate disputes involving these specialized laws. Greg Overstreet has resolved numerous open-government disputes as the Attorney General's open-government ombudsman. He also occasionally serves as a District Court judge (pro tem) and has experience deciding smaller civil cases.1

To our knowledge, no other firm in the state specifically offers mediation and arbitration services for open-government or media law disputes.

Amicus briefs

When a case impacts the direction of the law, trade associations whose members are affected will often file amicus (“friend of the court”) briefs. Allied Law Group's principals have probably filed more amicus briefs on open-government and media law cases than anyone else in the state.

Appeals

Allied Law Group's attorneys work on appeals on a variety of legal topics with roles ranging from representing the client at the trial court to consulting with other attorneys on their clients' appeals.

1The jurisdiction of state district court is generally limited to small monetary civil cases and misdemeanors. District courts do not have jurisdiction over the kinds of law Allied Law Group practices; usually state Superior Courts and federal courts have jurisdiction over our cases. Therefore, Greg Overstreet's service as a part-time District Court judge does not imply that he can influence the outcome of cases because the court on which he occasionally serves does not decide them.