JunkScience reports:
The Virginia Supreme Court holds that the University of Virginia is not a “person” subject to a “Civil Investigative Demand” from the attorney general.
This means that UVa won’t have to produce Michael Mann’s Climategate e-mails and documents to Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli.
More, including the opinion document at JunkScience.com here
Just pull the funding plug, then. If the UVa isn’t a “person”, it should have no use for money. Let it become independent of the state and see how their brand of “honest science” fares in the marketplace of universities.
Good luck, UVa.
MJW says:March 2, 2012 at 8:52 pm
“I think it sounds reasonable, but the dissent presents what seems to me to be a very good argument that it’s wrong.”
The dissenter concluded:
I would thus affirm the circuit court’s judgment setting aside the CIDs issued by the Attorney General to UVA, but, unlike the majority, I would do so without prejudice.
The majority didn’t rule on the lower courts broader reasons for rejecting the CJD’s (so they stand). The dissenter said they were right anyway.
The AG should just walk in and access the e-mails. Like I said in the other article, we do not live under a tribunal. Take your manpants, pull them up, and use your office to go get what you want. This is the worst thing that has become of our Public Officials. When you are in the right, then march on.
Under the dissenter’s opinion, the AG could have rewritten the CIDs to make them meet the statute’s requirements.
I do not understand. Since UVA is now deemed to be a part of the commonewealth and not a totally independent body, why does Cucinelli not now ask to see the emails under a freedom of information act or similar?
In the UK the UEA probably has similar status to UVA but, as Mr. Holland and others have discovered, the emails held by UEA can be discovered under FOI procedure (so long as they have not been deliberately lost or destroyed). The exception apparently being if it is considered not to be in the public interest.
well if UVA is part of the government and the commonwealth its agencies are subject to the AG’s query’s on demand.. thus they can not tell him no..
i say have the governor give an Executive order to produce…. as it is public and subject to the public records act..
I’d say a minor change in strategy is all that is necessary.. then watch them squirm out of that one..