Prof. Kirtley Applauds Advisory Opinion on Minnesota Open Meeting Law

Prof. Jane Kirtley was quoted in the Minneapolis Star Tribune in a story reporting an advisory opinion holding that the Metro Gang Strike Force violated the state's Open Meeting Law by conducting official business via e-mail. "Most state laws don't even contemplate e-mail exchanges, so courts are having to extrapolate from the language of the statute" to discern legislative intent, she said. "Was this exchange about a matter of business that, if it were conducted in a face-to-face meeting, would be subject to the Open Meeting Law? If the answer is yes, you don't want the officials to do an end-run around the law."