Clark’s Child Custody File to Remain Sealed

The outcome of the O.J. Simpson trial may still be weeks away, but in another court, prosecutor Marcia Clark could claim victory this week.

Without comment, the state Court of Appeal on Thursday denied a request by her estranged husband, Gordon Clark, to overturn an order closing the couple’s child custody proceedings and forbidding those involved to publicly discuss any related issues.

Marcia Clark’s attorneys had fought vigorously for the seal and gag order after details of the child custody dispute became national news last spring. Gordon Clark, citing the prosecutor’s grueling work hours in the Simpson case, had filed for primary physical custody of their two young boys--a request he has since modified to joint custody.

“We are obviously very pleased that the Court of Appeal agrees with our position that the Clark children’s rights to privacy trump their father’s right of publicity,” said Judith R. Forman, Marcia Clark’s lawyer in her divorce case.

Gordon Clark, who has sold stories about his wife to a tabloid, argues that the gag order is an unconstitutional prior restraint of free speech. His attorneys, Roslyn Soudry and Stephen Rohde, indicated Friday that they may try again to get the gag order lifted after the Simpson trial is over and Marcia Clark’s visibility has diminished.