§ 4.7 PUBLIC RECORDS AND OPEN MEETINGS LITIGATION

• Jurisdiction: Arizona

§ 4.7 Public Records and Open Meetings Litigation

Attorneys' fees may be awarded in suits brought to obtain public records. This statute provides:

The court may award attorney fees and other legal costs that are reasonably incurred in any action under this article if the person seeking public records has substantially prevailed. Nothing in this subsection shall limit the rights of any party to recover attorney fees, expenses and double damages pursuant to § 12-349.

A.R.S. § 39-121.02(B). It is within the trial court's discretion to determine (1) if a person seeking public records substantially prevailed and (2) whether to award attorneys' fees to a substantially prevailing party. Democratic Party of Pima Cty. v. Ford, 228 Ariz. 545, 547-48, ¶¶ 8-11, 269 P.3d 721, 723-24 (App. 2012).

This statute was amended in 2006 removing the requirement that the court find that the claimant was "wrongfully denied" access to the records and that the custodian of the records acted in bad faith, or in an arbitrary or capricious manner. Laws 2006, ch. 249. See generally Lake v. City of Phoenix, 220 Ariz. 472, 484 n.16, ¶ 38, 207 P. 3d 725, 737 n.16 (App. 2009), vacated in part on unrelated issue, 222 Ariz. 547, 291 P.3d 1004 (2009); Phoenix New Times v. Arpaio, 217 Ariz. 533, 537 n.1, 177 P.3d 275, 279 n.1 (App. 2008). As a result of this amendment the...