Car accident settlement agreements reached outside of court are not typically confidential in Massachusetts, but they can be. In order to keep the settlement private, you or your attorney would need to express this requirement in the settlement agreement.
Examples of exemption 7 records are investigative files; pending criminal, civil, or administrative actions; background security investigations; affidavits; audit reports where an investigation is involved; names of special agents, informants, witnesses, and interviewees; information that would identify a confidential ...
The Massachusetts Public Records Law parallels federal law, with some variation. Every government record in Massachusetts is presumed to be public unless it may be withheld under a specifically stated exemption.
Information/data that is NOT covered by the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) includes: Non-agency records and personal records. Public requests for access to physical artifacts or scientific samples (e.g. core samples, sediment, rocks, fossils, specimen samples, blood samples).
Massachusetts' law allows 10 days for record responses. Exempt: Information that would invade individual privacy; trade secrets; public policy development memos; and investigative materials.
Equity agreements allow entrepreneurs to secure funding for their start-up by giving up a portion of ownership of their company to investors. In short, these arrangements typically involve investors providing capital in exchange for shares of stock which they will hold and potentially sell in the future for a profit.
4, § 7(26)(f), the “Investigatory Exemption,” protects from disclosure certain documents, which if released create a grave risk of directly or indirectly identifying a private citizen who volunteers as a witness. Said records are indefinitely exempt from disclosure under the Massachusetts Public Records Law.
Exemption One: Classified national defense and foreign relations information. Exemption Two: Internal agency personnel rules and practices. Exemption Three: Information that is prohibited from disclosure by another federal law.
Outside of those industries, the major exceptions include (1) existing agreements for “senior executives” (defined below), (2) non-competes entered into in connection with the bona fide sale of a business, and (3) non-competes enforced where the cause of action accrued prior to the rule's effective date.
Non-compete agreements must be specifically limited in two distinct ways, 1) in time, and 2) in geographic area. If a non-compete clause or agreement fails to limit the scope of the contract to a specific time period and a specific geographic area, it can often be invalidated.