Alex Rosetti v. Ramapo-Indian Hills Regional High School Board of Education and Thomas Lambe, in his official capacity as Records Custodian

Summary

The Supreme Court of New Jersey held that logs of government-related emails located in Board members’ personal email accounts are government records subject to disclosure under the Open Public Records Act. The Court affirmed as modified the Appellate Division’s judgment, clarifying that only logs of government-related emails—not entire personal email accounts—are subject to disclosure. The Board and its members must search the personal accounts, produce responsive logs, and certify the searches conducted.

Holdings

1. Logs limited to government-related emails contained in Board members' personal email accounts are government records subject to disclosure under OPRA, regardless of whether the accounts are personal or maintained on private servers.
2. The Board and its members must search their personal email accounts, or use another acceptable method that yields the Board-related emails, to create logs of government-related emails responsive to Rosetti's request.
3. Only logs of government-related emails are government records under OPRA; logs of entire personal email accounts are not government records merely because some messages in those accounts concern government business.

Questions Presented

1. Whether logs of government-related emails contained in Board members' personal email accounts are government records subject to disclosure under OPRA.
2. Whether OPRA requires the Board and its members to search personal email accounts and create logs of government-related emails when an electronically generated server log is unavailable.
3. Whether Rosetti's request for email logs from Board members' personal email addresses was overbroad.
4. What search and certification procedures are required to satisfy the Board's OPRA obligations.

Disposition

affirmed