January 6, 2012

Mr. W. Montgomery Meitler

Assistant Counsel

Texas Education Agency

1701 North Congress

Austin, Texas 78711-2548

OR2012-00305

Dear Mr. Meitler:

You ask whether certain information is subject to required public disclosure under the Public Information Act (the "Act"), chapter 552 of the Government Code. Your request was assigned ID# 442058 (TEA PIR# 16427).

The Texas Education Agency (the "agency") received a request for any documents related to a reprimand sanction given to a named educator. You state the agency will release the Agreed Final Order to the requestor. You state the agency has redacted social security numbers under section 552.147 of the Government Code. ⁽¹⁾ You claim the submitted information is privileged under rule 192.5 of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. We have considered your arguments and reviewed the submitted representative sample of information. ⁽²⁾

Initially, you acknowledge the requested information pertains to a completed investigation and is subject to section 552.022(a)(1) of the Government Code. This section provides for required public disclosure of "a completed report, audit, evaluation, or investigation made of, for, or by a governmental body[,]" unless the information is made confidential under the Act or "other law" or is excepted from disclosure under section 552.108 of the Government Code. Gov't Code § 552.022(a)(1). The Texas Supreme Court has held the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure are "other law" that makes information expressly confidential for the purposes of section 552.022. In re City of Georgetown, 53 S.W.3d 328, 336 (Tex. 2001). Therefore, we will consider your arguments under rule 192.5 for the requested information.

Rule 192.5 of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure encompasses the attorney work-product privilege. For purposes of section 552.022 of the Government Code, information is confidential under rule 192.5 only to the extent the information implicates the core work product aspect of the work-product privilege. See Open Records Decision No. 677 at 9-10 (2002). Rule 192.5 defines core work product as the work product of an attorney or an attorney's representative, developed in anticipation of litigation or for trial, that contains the mental impressions, opinions, conclusions, or legal theories of the attorney or the attorney's representative. See Tex. R. Civ. P. 192.5(a), (b)(1). Accordingly, in order to withhold attorney core work product from disclosure under rule 192.5, a governmental body must demonstrate the material was (1) created for trial or in anticipation of litigation and (2) consists of the mental impressions, opinions, conclusions, or legal theories of an attorney or an attorney's representative. Id.

The first prong of the work-product test, which requires a governmental body to show the information at issue was created in anticipation of litigation, has two parts. A governmental body must demonstrate that (1) a reasonable person would have concluded from the totality of the circumstances surrounding the investigation that there was a substantial chance that litigation would ensue, and (2) the party resisting discovery believed in good faith that there was a substantial chance that litigation would ensue and conducted the investigation for the purpose of preparing for such litigation. See Nat'l Tank v. Brotherton, 851 S.W.2d 193, 207 (Tex. 1993). A "substantial chance" of litigation does not mean a statistical probability, but rather "that litigation is more than merely an abstract possibility or unwarranted fear." Id. at 204. The second part of the work product test requires the governmental body to show the materials at issue contain the mental impressions, opinions, conclusions, or legal theories of an attorney or an attorney's representative. See Tex. R. Civ. P. 192.5(b)(1). A document containing core work product information that meets both parts of the work product test is confidential under rule 192.5, provided the information does not fall within the scope of the exceptions to the privilege enumerated in rule 192.5(c). See Pittsburgh Corning Corp. v. Caldwell, 861 S.W.2d 423, 427 (Tex. App.-- Houston [14th Dist.] 1993, no writ).

If a requestor seeks a governmental body's entire litigation file, the governmental body may assert the file is excepted from disclosure in its entirety because such a request implicates the core work-product aspect of the privilege. ORD No. 677 at 5-6. Thus, in such a situation, if the governmental body demonstrates the file was created for trial or in anticipation of litigation, this office will presume the entire file is within the scope of the privilege. Open Records Decision No. 647 at 5 (1996) (citing Nat'l Union Fire Ins. Co. v. Valdez, 863 S.W.2d 458, 461 (Tex. 1993)) (organization of attorney's litigation file necessarily reflects attorney's thought processes); see also Curry v. Walker, 873 S.W.2d 379, 380 (Tex. 1994) (holding "the decision as to what to include in [the file] necessarily reveals the attorney's thought processes concerning the prosecution or defense of the case").

You inform us the agency "regulates and oversees all aspects of the certification, continuing education, and enforcement of standards of conduct for certified educators in Texas public schools under the authority of chapter 21 of the Education Code." See Educ. Code §§ 21.031(a), .041. You also explain the agency litigates enforcement proceedings under the Administrative Procedure Act (the "APA"), chapter 2001 of the Government Code, and rules adopted by the agency under subchapter B of chapter 21 of the Education Code. See id. § 21.041(b)(7); 19 T.A.C. § 249.3 et seq. You represent to this office the requested information consists of the entire investigation file of the agency's investigation into alleged educator misconduct. You also state the file was created by attorneys, legal staff, and other representatives of the agency in anticipation of litigation. Cf. Open Records Decision No. 588 (1991) (contested case under APA constituted litigation for purposes of statutory predecessor to Gov't Code § 552.103). Based on your representations, we conclude the agency may withhold the submitted information as core attorney work product under Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 192.5.

This letter ruling is limited to the particular information at issue in this request and limited to the facts as presented to us; therefore, this ruling must not be relied upon as a previous determination regarding any other information or any other circumstances.

This ruling triggers important deadlines regarding the rights and responsibilities of the governmental body and of the requestor. For more information concerning those rights and responsibilities, please visit our website at http://www.oag.state.tx.us/open/index_orl.php, or call the Office of the Attorney General's Open Government Hotline, toll free, at (877) 673-6839. Questions concerning the allowable charges for providing public information under the Act must be directed to the Cost Rules Administrator of the Office of the Attorney General, toll free at (888) 672-6787.

Sincerely,

Neal Falgoust

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

NF/agn

Ref: ID# 442058

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. Section 552.147 of the Government Code authorizes a governmental body to redact a living person's social security number from public release without the necessity of requesting a decision from this office. See Gov't Code § 552.147(b).

2. We assume the "representative sample" of records submitted to this office is truly representative of the requested records as a whole. See Open Records Decision Nos. 499 (1988), 497 (1988). This open records letter does not reach, and therefore does not authorize the withholding of, any other requested records to the extent those records contain substantially different types of information than those submitted to this office.

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