What You Need to Know About the Minnesota "Sunshine" Laws: Data Practices and Open Meetings

Understand the data practices and the open meetings law in Minnesota so you can use them to your advantage.

This topic will examine the pair of Minnesota "Sunshine" laws: the Government Data Practices Act and the Open Meeting Law. Review the history and development of the two measures and focus on a number of the most challenging and important provisions of the two statutes, as well as the interaction between them and Federal laws, including employee discipline issues. Discuss the strategies in using the measures from the perspective of government entities, individuals, organizational, and businesses, employers, and labor unions. Management personnel, public sector officials, human resource employees, and attorneys representing management, individuals, businesses, and labor organizations will benefit from this topic by learning how the two "Sunshine" laws can be used most effectively, efficiently, and economically, as well as their application in civil litigation, and some criminal matters.

Learning Objectives

- You will be able to identify disciplinary dilemmas.

- You will be able to recognize parallels to Federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

- You will be able to discuss attorney's fees, and other remedies.

- You will be able to review open meetings and coordination with Data Practices Act.