Ohio Code 2303.901 – Case documents
(A) As used in this section:
Terms Used In Ohio Code 2303.901
- Child: includes child by adoption. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Clerk of court: An officer appointed by the court to work with the chief judge in overseeing the court's administration, especially to assist in managing the flow of cases through the court and to maintain court records.
- Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
- Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Person: includes an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, and association. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Property: means real and personal property. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Rule: includes regulation. See Ohio Code 1.59
- state: means the state of Ohio. See Ohio Code 1.59
(1) “Case document” means any document, or information in any document, that is submitted to a court or filed with a clerk of court in a court action or proceeding, including any exhibit, pleading, motion, order, or judgment, or any documentation prepared by the court or clerk in the action or proceeding, including journals, dockets, and indices.
“Case document” does not include any of the following:
(a) Any document or information in any document that is exempt from disclosure under state, federal, or common law;
(b) Personal identifiers;
(c) Any document or information in any document to which public access has been restricted under Rule 45 of the Rules of Superintendence for the Courts of Ohio;
(d) Except as relevant to the juvenile’s prosecution later as an adult, a juvenile’s previous disposition in abuse, neglect, or dependency cases, juvenile civil commitment files, post-adjudicatory residential treatment facility reports, or post-adjudicatory releases of a juvenile’s social history;
(e) Notes, drafts, recommendations, advice, or research of court officers or staff;
(f) Forms containing personal identifiers that are submitted or filed pursuant to Rule 45 of the Rules of Superintendence for the Courts of Ohio;
(g) Information on, or obtained from, the Ohio courts network, except that the information shall be available at the originating source if not otherwise exempt from public access;
(h) In a court of common pleas or a division of that court with domestic relations or juvenile jurisdiction, any of the following documents, including documents prepared pursuant to section 2151.281, division (E)(3) of section 3105.171, or section 3109.04 of the Revised Code, or Rule 48 of the Rules of Superintendence for the Courts of Ohio:
(i) Health care documents, including physical health, psychological health, psychiatric health, mental health, or counseling documents;
(ii) Drug or alcohol use assessments or predisposition treatment facility reports;
(iii) Guardian ad litem reports, including collateral source documents attached to or filed with the reports;
(iv) Home investigation reports, including collateral source documents attached to or filed with the reports;
(v) Child custody evaluations or reports, including collateral source documents attached to or filed with the evaluations or reports;
(vi) Domestic violence risk assessments;
(vii) Supervised parenting time or companionship or visitation records or reports, including exchange records or reports;
(viii) Financial disclosure records or statements regarding property, debt, taxes, income, or expenses, including collateral source documents attached to or filed with the records or statements;
(ix) Asset appraisals and evaluations.
(2) “Personal identifiers” means any of the following:
(a) Social security numbers, except for the last four digits;
(b) Financial account numbers, including debit card, charge card, or credit card numbers;
(c) Employer or employee identification numbers;
(d) A juvenile’s name in an abuse, neglect, or dependency case, except for the juvenile’s initials or a generic abbreviation such as “CV” for “child victim.”
(B)(1) When submitting a case document to the court or filing a case document with the clerk of court, a party to an action or proceeding shall omit personal identifiers from the case document pursuant to Rule 45 of the Rules of Superintendence for the Courts of Ohio.
(2) The clerk of court is not liable to any party or any person if a case document that is submitted to the court or filed with the clerk of court contains personal identifiers and the clerk posts that case document on its web site.
Last updated February 16, 2023 at 6:11 PM
