Court’s Rule on Secrecy Shines Welcomed Light on Civil Trials : More will benefit from product-liability lawsuits

Once again, county Superior Court judges are showing their talent for innovation. This time, the beneficiaries will be anyone seeking information in the sometimes-murky world of product liability.

The court that introduced the fast-track system for civil cases--a reform adopted in courts around the state--has enacted a rule limiting the kinds of information that can be sealed once litigation has begun in civil cases. Even defense lawyers concede that the effort to hide damaging information or trade secrets has been extended over time to include disclosures that are merely embarrassing.

Under the new rule, enacted July 1, a three-pronged test must be met before a judge will seal an out-of-court settlement or information arising from the discovery process in a trial. A court file can remain secret only if non-disclosure is in the public interest, the material contains trade secrets or other privileged information, and unsealing the file would cause “serious harm.”

The public obviously stands to benefit. The results of most product liability lawsuits--and other litigation concerning the public interest--now will be routinely available to an interested public, not hidden in sealed settlements.

The rule also will further streamline the judicial process. Plaintiffs won’t have to pry information out of recalcitrant defendants if it is readily available from previous trials.

Will the reform encourage well-heeled defendants to settle fewer claims, using their legal might to deter plaintiffs with a long court fight? Perhaps not. If someone is hiding information, more will come out in a trial than in a settlement.

Will they seek changes of venue, or settle prior to litigation? Perhaps. But if other courts adopt this rule, the incentive for changes of venue would be minimized. Pre-litigation settlements were always an option under the former rules.

The courts are a public forum. Once matters land there, their outcomes should be largely open to the public--especially when the results can have a bearing on consumers.