How to properly redact information from court documents

Starting July 1, the public will have access to public court records from personal electronic devices, per a Supreme Court of Missouri rule change approved last year. The rule change heightens the importance of existing requirements for anyone filing documents in any Missouri state court (lawyers, court staff, parties, etc.) to keep unnecessary confidential information out of public documents. When confidential information must be included, those filing will have to attest that such confidential information in the publicly available documents has been properly redacted.

With less than five months until the effective date, many lawyers may be wondering: How do I ensure I am properly redacting confidential information?

Affinity Insight, The Missouri Bar’s practice management member benefit partner, has created several videos walking viewers through redacting content using various applications. Those applications include:

·        Adobe Acrobat DC,

·        Adobe Acrobat X Pro,

·        Foxit PDF Editor 11,

·        Foxit PhantomPDF,

·        Kofax,

·        Kofax Power PDF Advance Form, and

·        PDF Docs.

To watch the tutorial videos and find more resources about redaction requirements and expanded remote public access, visit The Missouri Bar’s Remote Public Access and Redaction Resource Center.

If you’re interested in additional practice management videos and lessons, Missouri Bar members get unlimited, no-cost access to Affinity Insight’s video library. Get Affinity Insight’s standard membership for $0 by using the coupon code MOBARMEMBER at checkout.

Looking for additional resources to help open, build, manage, protect, or wind down a practice? Missouri Bar members have access to more than 100 whitepapers, comparison charts, checklists, and more through The Missouri Bar’s Practice Management center.