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Rule 6 – Court files; confidentiality; access; proceedings.

May 14, 2021 | Family Law, West Virginia

(a) General provisions. – All orders and indices are public records. All pleadings, recordings, exhibits, transcripts, or other documents contained in a court file are confidential, and shall not be available for public inspection; but unless the file is sealed pursuant to this rule or access is otherwise prohibited by order, any document in the file shall be available for inspection and copying by the parties, attorneys of record, guardians ad litem, designees authorized by a party in writing, and any person with standing to modify or enforce a support order. A family court judge or circuit judge may open and inspect the entire contents of the court file in any case pending before the judge’s court. When sensitive information has been disclosed in a hearing, pleading, or document filing, the court may order such information sealed in the court file. Sealed court files shall be opened only by order.
(b) Family court proceedings are not open to the public.
(c) Orders permitting examination or copying of file contents. – Upon written motion, for good cause shown, the court may enter an order permitting a person who is not permitted access to a court file under section (a) of this rule to examine and/or copy documents in a file. Such orders shall set forth specific findings which demonstrate why the interests of justice necessitate the examination and/or copying, and shall specify the particular documents to be examined and/or copied and the arrangements under which such examination and/or copying shall take place.
(d) Obtaining confidential records. – Unless the person who is the subject of confidential records waives confidentiality in writing, such records may not be obtained by subpoena; but only by court order and upon full compliance with statutory and case law requirements. Such records include, but are not limited to: confidential medical and educational records; and confidential records of the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources; the Office of Social Services; the Office of Economic Services; the child support enforcement agency; West Virginia juvenile court proceedings; mental health treatment and counseling; substance abuse treatment; and domestic violence shelters.

W. Va. R. Prac. & P. Fam. Ct. 6

Amended by order adopted November 27, 2001, effective January 1, 2002; and by order entered and effective December 1, 2005; amended September 11, 2019, effective November 1, 2019.

Clerk’s Comment:

Current limitations with electronic filing prevent orders in family court cases from being available electronically. Family court orders and indices are available for public inspection at the circuit clerk’s office.