Plaquemines Par. Com. Council v. Delta Dev. Co. - 472 So. 2d 560 (La. 1985)

Rule:

The right of privacy is not absolute; it is qualified by the rights of others. The right of privacy is also limited by society's right to be informed about legitimate subjects of public interest.

Facts:

A local politician was the District Attorney for the Parish for decades. At the same time, he held numerous positions that affected the granting of mineral rights in the Parish. He also allegedly owned a private company that held and exploited mineral rights. His sons held similar positions. The council filed an action against the politician's extended family to recover revenue and mineral interests improperly taken from the Parish. The family sought a protective order to prohibit public disclosure of information produced by it. Eventually, the trial court ruled that documents could be designated "confidential" on an individual basis and ruled that the protective order did not apply to those who had been public officials or to their immediate families. The appellate court expanded the protective order to include all defendants and all designated materials. The local government council challenged the appellate court’s order. 

Issue:

Was the protective order, which aimed to prohibit public dissemination of information obtained through discovery, valid? 

Answer:

No.

Conclusion:

The Louisiana Supreme Court ruled that the right of the public to public information, especially that pertaining to public officials, outweighed the privacy interests supposedly protected by the expanded, blanket protective order. According to the Court, the defendants, who were public officials have a diminished right to privacy, especially concerning information which had to do with their conduct in the administration of their office and with revenues derived therefrom.