Opinion ID: 1936728
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Governing Principles Applied

Text: Applying the foregoing principles to the record before us, we are compelled to conclude that the trial judge used too broad a brush in sustaining the claims of exemption. At oral argument, counsel for MBOC and, to a lesser extent, counsel for the intervenors, conceded that not all of the materials submitted in or with the eligibility statements and business profiles was exempt. The soundness of these concessions is surely apparent from the information which these forms require applicants to provide. We agree, for example, that entrepreneurs should not be put in the position of having their marketing techniques made a part of the public record and available as a windfall to their competitors. In the absence of proffered reasoning to the contrary, on the other hand, we are not persuaded that disclosure of the race, per se, of the principals of an enterprise would lead to competitive injury, nor do we discern any basis in the affidavits submitted by MBOC or intervenors that such injury could result. [7] Not every document or part thereof is either obviously exempt or obviously nonexempt. Moreover, there is no indication in the record that the trial judge made a determination as to whether the exempt portion of any document can reasonably be segregated from the remainder, as required by § 1-1524(b). Accordingly, we must remand the case for a more detailed analysis by the trial judge.