Opinion ID: 4241107
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Vaughn Index

Text: This Court reverses the October 28, 2016, order which unsealed the entire Vaughn Index of 349 documents and allowed its production. The order was entered as a sanction against the Attorney General for sharing part of the Index with the Federal Trade Commission. During the investigations of the proposed merger, the Federal Trade Commission transferred a number of documents it received to the Attorney General. The FTC transferred the documents on the condition that the material be kept confidential and used only for law enforcement purposes. Later, at the FTC’s request, the Attorney General provided the FTC with a redacted version of the Vaughn Index which listed the documents the FTC had sent to the Attorney General. Finding that the Attorney General had, thus, revealed a portion of the Index without authorization, the circuit court entered the sanction. 14 As a result of this holding, this Court need not address the additional exemption raised by the Attorney General under W.Va. Code, 29B-1-4(a)(8) [2015], of the Freedom of Information Act which provides for the nondisclosure of “internal memoranda or letters received or prepared by any public body.” We note, however, that the Attorney General’s conclusion that the merger was in the best interests of the State of West Virginia was not effectively made until the amended Assurance of Voluntary Compliance was filed on November 4, 2015, after the Attorney General received the documents in question. 20 This Court is of the opinion that the unsealing of the Vaughn Index, thereby permitting public access to the list of 349 documents, was inappropriate, given the relatively minor nature of the Attorney General’s transgression. The record before us includes the affidavit of the Senior Deputy Attorney General which states that the materials provided to the FTC only referenced FTC documents.15 No additional information contained in the Vaughn Index was provided. Pursuant to W.Va. Code, 47-18-14 [1978], of the Antitrust Act, the Attorney General “may cooperate with officials of the federal government and the several states in the enforcement of this article.” Moreover, the purpose of a Vaughn Index is limited to matters of litigation and serves as a resource for the benefit of the trial court. See Associated Press v. Canterbury, 224 W.Va. at 713, 688 S.E.2d at 322 (The purpose of the Vaughn Index is to allow the circuit court to determine the validity of the government’s claimed exemptions without the court having to physically examine each document.). See also Farley v. Worley, 15 The Attorney General’s transgression was providing the FTC with a portion of the sealed Vaughn Index without first requesting authorization or leave from the circuit court in the form of a motion or otherwise. See, e.g., W.Va. R. Civ. P. 26(c) (providing that a deposition sealed under a protective order “be opened only by order of the court”). The affidavit of the Senior Deputy Attorney General states that the providing of the portion of the Index was in compliance with W.Va. Code, 47-18-14 [1978], which authorizes cooperation between the Attorney General and the federal government in the enforcement of antitrust laws. According to the affidavit, there was no intent to violate the order placing the Vaughn Index under seal. However, the Senior Deputy Attorney General also set forth an apology in the affidavit, in the event the circuit court were to take a different view of the disclosure. 21 215 W.Va. at 426, 599 S.E.2d at 849 (The Vaughn Index “is implicated by FOIA litigation ­ not simply by a FOIA denial.” It is specifically prepared for litigation purposes.). Here, no contents of any documents were disclosed, and the Federal Trade Commission only received a portion of the Index listing its own material. This Court concludes that the unsealing of the Vaughn Index constituted an abuse of discretion. See State ex rel. Richmond Am. Homes of W.Va., Inc. v. Sanders, 226 W.Va. 103, 110, 697 S.E.2d 139, 146 (2010) (An abuse of discretion standard is applied in reviewing the imposition of sanctions.). The October 28, 2016, order which unsealed the Vaughn Index is reversed. Furthermore, having reversed the orders of the circuit court which directed production of the 89 documents and the Vaughn Index, the petitions for appeal filed by St. Mary’s are moot.