7(1)(n)

How the Public Access Counselor has treated 7(1)(n)

Section 7(1)(n) covers records relating to the adjudication of employee grievances or disciplinary cases, with final disciplinary outcomes remaining subject to disclosure. The question in these matters is whether the record was created for or used in that adjudicative process, rather than merely touching on employee conduct or a workplace dispute.

In these decisions, the Public Access Counselor applied the exemption narrowly. Public bodies were found to have violated FOIA when they withheld video footage, a termination letter, investigatory reports and complaints, a no-confidence letter, and emails about compensation or student services. Withholding was upheld only where the body showed through confidential review that termination and reinstatement records related to a disciplinary adjudication. Conclusory claims or reliance on multiple exemptions without clear and convincing proof were rejected.

At a glance: 11 documents from 2018 to 2025(5 binding opinions, 6 determination letters). Most often cited alongside: 7(1)(c) (Personal privacy) (6); 7(1)(b) (Private information) (3); 7(1)(a) (Federal/State-law confidentiality — or public defender case files, for documents issued under the other amendment version) (2); 7(1)(d) (Law-enforcement/administrative-proceeding records) (2); 7(1)(f) (Preliminary drafts, notes, and deliberative materials) (2).

Recurring issues

• Public bodies withheld video recordings of incidents on the ground that they related to an employee disciplinary adjudication. (Police video of a former deputy chief's DUI arrest, Video surveillance footage from an animal control facility)
• Public bodies withheld termination and reinstatement records as records relating to disciplinary adjudication. (A mayor's termination letter to a village clerk, Employment, termination, and reinstatement records for a university employee)
• Public bodies withheld complaints, investigatory reports, or findings concerning alleged employee misconduct. (Misconduct complaints against a former district police officer, Complaints and investigatory findings about a public employee)
• Public bodies applied the exemption to records that existed independently of a grievance adjudication, such as pay emails or records about student services. (Emails about a school employee's compensation, Records on a student's medical homebound instruction grievance)

Practical points

• A public body should be prepared to show by clear and convincing evidence how the withheld record relates to adjudication of a grievance or disciplinary case.
• A requester should know that video footage, employee correspondence, and investigatory materials have been ordered disclosed where the body did not link them to an actual adjudication.
• A public body should separate any exempt adjudication material from final disciplinary outcomes and other non-exempt portions for release.

Summary drafted from the linked decisions and checked against them; read the decisions themselves before relying on it. Not legal advice.