The Third Circuit’s recent non-precedential opinion in Doe v. Rutgers is worth noting simply because it’s so rare for a federal court to deal with OPRA issues.

The case began with Doe filing a complaint in state court concerning Rutgers’ response to his OPRA request. Doe complained that Rutgers denied access to some records, and he also challenged Rutgers’ assessment of a special service charge of $7020 with regard to other records requested.

Rutgers removed the case to federal court. The Third Circuit held that the federal court properly had jurisdiction, because although Doe filed his complaint under OPRA, his principal claim was that the special service charge violated a federal law, FERPA.

The court affirmed the dismissal of the complaint on various grounds. One claim was dismissed for failure to meet OPRA’s 45-day statute of limitations. With regard to the FERPA claim, the court determined that this statute was not violated because the records sought were not educational records within the meaning of FERPA.

The court also addressed whether the special service charge imposed by Rutgers was proper under OPRA. It upheld the charge as reasonable and permitted by OPRA. The court noted there were 4608 pages of responsive records, and “each page had to be reviewed and redacted by a Rutgers staff member to prevent disclosure of other students’ confidential information.”