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12-17 McBURNEY, ET AL. V. YOUNG, ET AL. DECISION BELOW: 667 F.3d 454 CERT. GRANTED 10/5/2012 QUESTION PRESENTED: Under the Privileges and Immunities Clause of Article IV and the dormant Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution, may a state preclude citizens of other states from enjoying the same right of access to public records that the state affords its own citizens? LOWER COURT CASE NUMBER: 11-1099
The U.S. Supreme Court case of Mark J. McBurney et al., v. Nathaniel L. Young, Deputy Commissioner and Director, Virginia Division of Child Support Enforcement, et al., 2012 revolved around the constitutionality of a state law restricting access to public records only to its citizens under the Privileges and Immunities Clause and Dormant Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. The petitioners were two non-Virginia residents who had requested documents from Virginia's government but were denied based on their residency status as per Virginia’s Freedom of Information Act (VFOIA). They argued that this violated their constitutional rights by discriminating against out-of-state citizens in terms of equal protection and interstate commerce laws respectively. However, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously in favor of Young upholding VFOIA's citizen-only provision stating it did not violate either clause because there was no fundamental right for individuals to access public information nor did it inhibit interstate commerce.
In the case of McBurney v. Young, there was no dissenting opinion as the decision was unanimous (9-0) in favor of Nathaniel L. Young and others. The Supreme Court held that Virginia's Freedom of Information Act, which grants state citizens access to all public records but does not extend this right to non-citizens, did not violate the Privileges and Immunities Clause or Dormant Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. All justices agreed with this ruling; therefore, a summary for a dissenting opinion is not applicable in this context.