SJC to Hear Key Open Meeting Case Monday

An important case interpreting the Massachusetts open meeting law comes up for argument before the Supreme Judicial Court on Monday. The case, District Attorney v. Wayland School Committee, presents the question of whether a school committee violated the law when it met in closed session to discuss the performance evaluation of the school superintendent.

(Note: The MNPA filed an amicus brief in this case in support of the District Attorney.)

The open meeting law requires that all committee meetings be open to the public except those that fall within express exceptions. This case involves the exception that allows a committee to meet in private “to discuss the reputation, character, physical condition or mental health rather than the professional competence of an individual.” That italicized phrase is understood to mean that professional competence cannot be the subject of a closed meeting.

Despite that, the trial judge in this case relied on a separate exception to rule that the closed-door meeting was lawful. That exception allows a private meeting to “conduct strategy sessions in preparation for negotiations with nonunion personnel, to conduct collective bargaining sessions or contract negotiations with nonunion personnel.”

The trial judge reasoned that because the superintendent was compensated pursuant to a written contract, and given that the amount of compensation was to be based, in part, on the evaluation, then the evaluation, itself, was to be considered part of the contract negotiation.

The problem with this reasoning is that it renders meaningless the professional competence exclusion noted above. Professional competence is a nearly universal measure on which employers base employment decisions. If every discussion of professional competence is to be considered a prelude to an employment-related decision, then it could always be discussed in private, under the trial judge’s reasoning.

Interest in the case drew amicus briefs not just from the MNPA, but also from the Mass. Municipal Association, the Mass. Association of School Superintendents, and the Mass. Association of School Committees. You can read the briefs at the SJC’s site and watch Monday’s oral arguments via webcam.

MNPA Elects New Officers

l_orestedarconteOreste P. D’Arconte, publisher of The Sun Chronicle, was elected president of the Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association during the group’s annual meeting Dec. 5 at Anthony’s Pier 4. D’Arconte has been publisher since 1998 and has been with The Sun Chronicle and a predecessor, The Attleboro Sun, for 39 years. He succeeds Larry McDermott, publisher and chief executive officer of The Republican in Springfield.

Elected with D’Arconte were:

Retired Supreme Court justice John M. Greaney, now with Suffolk Law School, was the luncheon speaker.

In addition to the MNPA, D’Arconte is board secretary for the New England Press Association and chairman of its annual convention in February, and is contest committee chairman for the New England Newspaper Association.

MNPA Elects New Officers

l_orestedarconteOreste P. D’Arconte, publisher of The Sun Chronicle, was elected president of the Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association during the group’s annual meeting Dec. 5 at Anthony’s Pier 4. D’Arconte has been publisher since 1998 and has been with The Sun Chronicle and a predecessor, The Attleboro Sun, for 39 years. He succeeds Larry McDermott, publisher and chief executive officer of The Republican in Springfield.

Elected with D’Arconte were:

Retired Supreme Court justice John M. Greaney, now with Suffolk Law School, was the luncheon speaker.

In addition to the MNPA, D’Arconte is board secretary for the New England Press Association and chairman of its annual convention in February, and is contest committee chairman for the New England Newspaper Association.

Still Time to Register: MNPA Annual Meeting

The annual meeting of the Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association is this Friday, Dec. 5. There is still time to register and you can do so using the 2008 registration form.

Our luncheon speaker is retiring Supreme Judicial Court Justice John M. Greaney, longtime cochair of the SJC’s Judiciary-Media Committee. Today is his last day at the court before he joins the Suffolk University Law School faculty. (See Saturday’s profile of Justice Greaney by AP writer Denise Lavoie.)

Our morning panel will explore the legal issues surrounding blogs and comments on newspaper-hosted Web sites. Three experts will share their insights and advice:

The day begins with the MNPA’s annual business meeting at 10 a.m., followed by the panel discussion at 11, a reception at noon and the luncheon at 12:30. The event is being held at Anthony’s Pier 4 in Boston.

Questions? E-mail info@masspublishers.org.

Justice Greaney to Address Annual Meeting


The Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association is honored to announce that retiring Supreme Judicial Court Justice John M. Greaney will address its annual luncheon Dec. 5. Justice Greaney, who retires from the bench Nov. 30, has played a special role in helping to improve the relationship between the courts and the news media, having been co-chair of the SJC’s Judiciary-Media Committee since its establishment in 1995. Upon his retirement, Justice Greaney will join the Suffolk University Law School faculty and serve as director of the Macaronis Institute for Trial and Appellate Advocacy housed at Suffolk.

As a justice on the highest appellate court in Massachusetts, Justice Greaney authored numerous significant opinions on a range of important issues, including several of importance to the news media. He served in the military and engaged in private practice before joining the judiciary in 1974 as the presiding judge of the Hampden County Housing Court. He later served as a justice the Massachusetts Superior Court and the Massachusetts Appeals Court. He was chief justice of the Massachusetts Appeals Court before his appointment to the Supreme Judicial Court.

He has taught law at Western New England College Law School and Westfield State College; lectured and written extensively for continuing legal and judicial education programs; edited books on the law of deceptive and unfair practices and appellate practice and procedure; and co-authored books on civil jury instructions and summary judgment.

Justice Greaney received his bachelor’s degree with honors in 1960 from the College of the Holy Cross, and his law degree in 1963 from New York University School of Law, where he was a Root-Tilden scholar and chairperson of the Annual Survey of American Law. He has received the Robert B. MacKay and Public Service Awards from N.Y.U. School of Law, the Haskell Cohn Distinguished Judicial Service Award from the Boston Bar Association, Western New England College’s Presidential Medallion, and the Massachusetts Judges Conference President’s Award for Judicial Excellence.

The annual luncheon begins at noon on Dec. 5 at Anthony’s Pier Four in Boston. Prior to the luncheon at 11 a.m., a panel of lawyers and editors will discuss the legal and practical issues surrounding blogs and comments on newspaper-hosted Web sites. To register for the meeting, download the 2008 registration form.

Sunshine law could see brighter days

From the March 23 Cape Cod Times, Sunshine law could see brighter days:

“When someone complains that a local official has violated the state’s Open Meeting Law, it’s up to the district attorney to investigate.

“That leads to different interpretations of the law all over the state, and there is a lack of enforcement provisions built in, said Robert Ambrogi, executive director of the Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers’ Association.”

Read the rest of the story.

Town’s Unposted Meetings Violated Law

The town of Charlton’s ad hoc Water Search Subcommittee violated the Massachusetts open meeting law when it met in a series of unposted meetings, the Worcester District Attorney’s Office has ruled. According to the Worcester Telegram & Gazette, the meetings came to light after the newspaper filed a public records request for the subcommittee’s minutes. Upon learning of the illegal meetings, the newspaper filed a complaint with the DA.

Public records allow scrutiny


Part 4 of The Republican’s Sunshine Week series: Public records allow scrutiny:

“It happens all the time.

“The tenants complain about conditions in their apartment, a city inspection follows, and a notice of violations is mailed to the property owner demanding compliance.

“Landlord Anthony Ping Zuo, of the affluent suburb of Weston, however, found himself under the added scrutiny of The Republican – triggered by a wide-open paper trail that would link Zuo to hundreds of code violations in buildings across the region, and beyond.”

Read the rest of the story.