OML-AO-4809

 

                                                                                                September 9, 2009

 

The staff of the Committee on Open Government is authorized to issue advisory opinions.  The ensuing staff advisory opinion is based solely upon the information presented in your correspondence.

Dear

            We are in receipt of your request for an advisory opinion concerning application of the Open Meetings Law to certain proceedings of the Hamilton County Industrial Development Agency.  Specifically, you questioned whether repeated motions to enter into executive session to discuss “the legal and financial aspects of the Mt. Oak project”, “the status of the litigation concerning Oak Mt. Ski Center”, “foreclosure proceedings” and “the Oak Mt. project and the financials related to the project” were in keeping with the provisions regarding executive sessions.  You submitted minutes from nine separate meetings, seven of which include an explanation that “no action was taken” during the executive session.  In this regard, we offer the following comments.

First, the Open Meetings Law requires that a procedure be accomplished, during an open meeting, before a public body may enter into an executive session. Section 105(1) states in relevant part that:

"Upon a majority vote of its total membership, taken in an open meeting pursuant to a motion identifying the general area or areas of the subject or subjects to be considered, a public body may conduct an executive session for the below enumerated purposes only..."

As such, a motion to conduct an executive session must include reference to the subject or subjects to be discussed, and the motion must be carried by majority vote of a public body's total membership before such a session may validly be held. The ensuing provisions of §105(1) specify and limit the subjects that may appropriately be considered during an executive session.

Second, it has been held judicially that:

"...the public body must identify the subject matter to be discussed (See, Public Officers Law § 105 [1]), and it is apparent that this must be accomplished with some degree of particularity, i.e., merely reciting the statutory language is insufficient (see, Daily Gazette Co. v Town Bd., Town of Cobleskill, 111 Misc 2d 303, 304-305). Additionally, the topics discussed during the executive session must remain within the exceptions enumerated in the statute (see generally, Matter of Plattsburgh Publ. Co., Div. of Ottaway Newspapers v City of Plattsburgh, 185 AD2d §18), and these exceptions, in turn, 'must be narrowly scrutinized, lest the article's clear mandate be thwarted by thinly veiled references to the areas delineated thereunder' (Weatherwax v Town of Stony Point, 97 AD2d 840, 841, quoting Daily Gazette Co. v Town Bd., Town of Cobleskill, supra, at 304; see, Matter of Orange County Publs., Div. of Ottaway Newspapers v County of Orange, 120 AD2d 596, lv dismissed 68 NY 2d 807)."

We stress that a public body may validly conduct an executive session only to discuss one or more of the subjects listed in §105(1) and that a motion to conduct an executive session must be sufficiently detailed to enable the public to ascertain whether there is a proper basis for entry into the closed session.

It would appear that the one of the pertinent grounds for entry in executive session would have been §105(1)(d), which permits a public body to enter into an executive session to discuss "proposed, pending or current litigation".

Based on judicial decisions, the scope of the so-called litigation exception is narrow.  While the courts have not sought to define the distinction between "proposed" and "pending" or "pending" and "current" litigation, they have provided direction concerning the scope of the exception in a manner consistent with the general intent of the grounds for entry into executive session.  Specifically, it has been held that:

"The purpose of paragraph d is 'to enable a public body to discuss pending litigation privately, without baring its strategy to its adversary through mandatory public meetings' (Matter of Concerned Citizens to Review Jefferson Val. Mall v. Town Bd. Of Town of Yorktown, 83 AD 2d 612, 613, 441 NYS 2d 292). The belief of the town's attorney that a decision adverse to petitioner 'would almost certainly lead to litigation' does not justify the conducting of this public business in an executive session. To accept this argument would be to accept the view that any public body could bar the public from its meetings simply be expressing the fear that litigation may result from actions taken therein. Such a view would be contrary to both the letter and the spirit of the exception" [Weatherwax v. Town of Stony Point, 97 AD 2d 840, 841 (1983)].

            Based on the foregoing, the exception is intended to permit a public body to discuss its litigation strategy behind closed doors, so as not to divulge its strategy to its adversary, who may be present with other members of the public at the meeting. We note too, that the Concerned Citizens decision cited in Weatherwax involved a situation in which a town board involved in litigation met with its adversary in an executive session to discuss a settlement. The court determined that there was no basis for entry into executive session; the ability of the board to conduct a closed session ended when the adversary was permitted to attend. In the context of the matter at issue, if a representative of Oak Mt. was invited to attend the executive session, the Board, in our view, would have lost its authority to conduct a private session.

            With regard to the sufficiency of a motion to discuss litigation, it has been held that:

"It is insufficient to merely regurgitate the statutory language; to wit, 'discussions regarding proposed, pending or current litigation'. This boilerplate recitation does not comply with the intent of the statute. To validly convene an executive session for discussion of proposed, pending or current litigation, the public body must identify with particularity the pending, proposed or current litigation to be discussed during the executive session" [Daily Gazette Co. , Inc. v. Town Board, Town of Cobleskill, 444 NYS 2d 44, 46 (1981), emphasis added by court].

The emphasis in the passage quoted above on the word "the" indicates that when the discussion relates to litigation that has been initiated, the motion must name the litigation. For example, a proper motion might be: "I move to enter into executive session to discuss our litigation strategy in the case of the XYZ Company v. the Hamilton County IDA." If the IDA Board seeks to discuss its litigation strategy in relation to a person or entity that it intends to sue, and if premature identification of that person or entity could adversely affect the interests of the IDA and its constituents, it has been suggested that the motion need not identify that person or entity, but that it should clearly indicate that the discussion will involve the litigation strategy. Only by means of that kind of description can the public know that the subject matter may justifiably be considered during an executive session.

            Accordingly, it is our opinion that the IDA should have been more articulate in describing the “litigation” which was the subject of its discussion.  If the discussion pertained to foreclosing against the owners of Oak Mt., the motion should have so indicated, and the discussion should have been limited to the IDA’s litigation strategy.  Additionally, in our opinion, an update on the status of legal proceedings would not necessarily rise to the level of discussion concerning strategy, and, therefore, may not have been an appropriate topic for executive session.

            To the extent that it was necessary to discuss the financial history of a particular person or corporation, pursuant to the Open Meetings Law, §105(1)(f), any such discussion should have been similarly limited to financial information, in our opinion, after which the Board should have returned to public session.

            On behalf of the Committee on Open Government, we hope that this is helpful to you.

                                                                                                Sincerely,

 

                                                                                                Camille S. Jobin-Davis
                                                                                                Assistant Director

 

CSJ:jm

cc: Industrial Development Agency