LILLIE v. STANFORD TRUST COMPANY SEI (2024)

Granted. Because the State of Louisiana, through the Office of Financial Institutions is a defendant in this litigation and the trial will focus on its actions, the general limitations on disclosure of OFI documents set forth in La. R.S. 6:103(H) must yield to La. Const. Art. I, § 22, which mandates that all courts shall be open. See, e.g., Plaquemines Par. Comm'n Council v. Delta Dev. Co., 472 So. 2d 560, 568 (La. 1985) (explaining “public officials have a diminished right to privacy, especially concerning information which had to do with their conduct in the administration of their office․”). We have consistently recognized there is “a strong societal interest in public trials.” Copeland v. Copeland, 2006-1023 (La. 6/2/06), 930 So. 2d 940, 941 (citing State v. Birdsong, 422 So.2d 1135 (La.1982).

Accordingly, the judgment of the trial court is reversed insofar as it denies relators’ motion for a public trial. The case is remanded to the trial court for further proceedings.

The motion to seal is denied. Relators shall be granted ten days from the date of this order to retrieve the motion and documents pursuant to Supreme Court Rule V, § 5.

PER CURIAM