Maintenance
Part of Court reporting: separate the docket from the story
Court story checklist: sealing, redaction, and protected names
Court story checklist for privacy: what sealing and protective orders mean, which federal rules limit identifiers, and how to handle minors, victims and jurors.
What to take away
- Redacted, sealed and under protective order are three different statuses; name the one that applies.
- Check the filing rule before repeating an identifier that sits in a public filing.
- Minors, crime victims, jurors and witnesses each draw protection from a different source.
- Sealing is not blanket secrecy and anonymity is not automatic; find the order.
- Describe what the record shows and stop where the record stops.
Privacy checks come after the reporting and before names go into a court story that is already in the news. Each protection has its own source and its own limit, so the work is to find that source. For the earlier stages, the court reporting guide sets out the method.
Three statuses that get confused
Redacted, sealed and under protective order are different statuses, and a story should say which one applies. Mixing them produces wrong claims about what the public can see. The table separates the three before the individual checks begin.
| Status | What it means | Source to check |
|---|---|---|
| Redacted | Identifiers removed from a filing that is otherwise public | The privacy-protection rule for filings |
| Sealed | A judicial record withheld from public access | The sealing order and the access standard it applied |
| Protective order | Limits on how discovery material may be used or shared | The order itself, entered for good cause |
A reporter who writes "sealed" for every hidden page has skipped the question of which order applies, and the story inherits that error. Name the status, then name the order. If neither can be confirmed, say that the status is unconfirmed rather than choosing the likeliest word.
Sealed does not mean one thing
A protective order is not the same as sealing a judicial record. In federal civil cases, Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), the protective-order rule, allows an order for good cause, while access to judicial records is assessed under separate law.
Courts assess that access under the applicable common-law right and, where it applies, the First Amendment. The Supreme Court's Nixon v. Warner Communications, Inc. addresses common-law access, while Press-Enterprise Co. v. Superior Court addresses First Amendment access. Identify the order and the standard it applied, rather than treating "sealed" as self-explanatory.
Describe a sealed entry without guessing its contents. Check the docket again just before publication, a habit that comes from the method for reading a docket and ruling, because sealing can be partial or temporary and may later be reviewed.
What the filing rules protect
For federal filings, check the privacy-protection rule titled "Privacy Protection for Filings Made with the Court" in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (Rule 5.2) or the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure (Rule 49.1), and follow its redaction requirements.
Do not repeat an identifier merely because it appears in a public filing. Rule 5.2(a) lets a federal civil filing show only the last four digits of a Social Security or taxpayer-identification number, the year of birth, a minor's initials and the last four digits of a financial-account number.
Rule 49.1(a) applies the same limits to criminal filings and adds the home address, which may appear only as city and state. Check the rule and any order before one of these identifiers goes into copy.
The cross-border privacy guide is background for data questions, not a substitute for court rules. A newsroom that works in both countries should keep the two sets of rules apart and cite the court's own text for any identifier decision.
Four people with their own protection
Four groups appear in court stories, and each draws protection from a different source. None of the sources gives a blanket answer, so the check is the specific statute, plan or order.
| Person | Check first | Do not assume |
|---|---|---|
| Juvenile subject | Confidentiality provisions of the Federal Juvenile Delinquency Act (18 U.S.C. § 5038); state law varies | That federal and state rules match |
| Crime victim | The Crime Victims' Rights Act (18 U.S.C. § 3771), which recognizes a right to fairness and respect for privacy | Blanket anonymity |
| Juror | The district's jury plan under the Jury Selection and Service Act (28 U.S.C. § 1861 et seq.) | That one district's practice applies everywhere |
| Witness | Any specific protective order in the case | Anonymity |
The U.S. Courts criminal-case guide describes investigations, complaints, indictments, pretrial proceedings, pleas, and access limits, and says most federal criminal cases conclude before trial, often through guilty pleas. The federal criminal-case reporting guide supports identifying the stage before deciding what may be said about a person in it.
Naming the accused fairly
Naming an accused person is a privacy decision as well as an accuracy one. Attribute each accusation to its author and seek a response before publishing. The evidence states in the guide to developing news stories apply: attributed until independently established.
- A complaint, charge, affidavit, or brief is attributed to its author.
- Plea and custody status are correct.
- Defense or opposing-party response was sought, and a lack of response is described accurately.
- Prior accusations are included only when relevant and fair.
- Victim, witness, minor, and juror privacy received a separate review.
Allegations and response checks
- Attribute complaint, charge, affidavit, or brief
- Headline does not present allegation as finding
- Plea and custody status correct
- Seek defense or opposing-party response
- Describe lack of response accurately
- Include prior accusations only if relevant and fair
Access rules differ by court
Access and device rules vary by court, so confirm them for the specific court before covering the hearing. The federal judiciary's media-basics page says courts have local practices, judges generally speak through proceedings and written decisions in active cases, and device rules can differ by court and judge.
Jurisdiction and rules checks
- Explain why this court hears the matter
- Do not mix federal, state, local, tribal, administrative
- Check local rules and standing orders
- Translate legal terms without changing meaning
The federal court media guidance supports checking the specific court rather than assuming one national access routine. For federal case dockets, PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) provides public access to court records, and CM/ECF is the federal courts' case-management and electronic-filing system. The PACER docket search guide covers fees.
Common questions
Is sealed the same as secret forever?
No. Sealing can be partial or temporary and may later be reviewed. Report the present access status and any public sealing order.
Is a protective order the same as a sealing order?
No. A protective order can be entered for good cause in federal civil cases, while access to a judicial record is assessed under the common-law right and, where it applies, the First Amendment.
Can a story name a crime victim?
The Crime Victims' Rights Act recognizes a right to fairness and respect for privacy. Do not imply blanket anonymity either way; check any order in the case and the court's rules first.
Does an access-to-information request open a sealed U.S. court record?
No. The Canadian access-to-information request guide concerns a different process. For a sealed U.S. entry, start with the court's sealing order.
When is legal review appropriate?
Consider it for high-risk allegations, privacy issues, reporting restrictions, sealed material, defamation concerns, or uncertainty about what may lawfully be published.
