Kylie Smith v. Board of Registration in Medicine (SPR 20200189)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records February 12, 2020 SPR20/0189 Robert E. Harvey, Esq. Board Counsel Board of Registration in Medicine 200 Harvard Mill Square, Suite 330 Wakefield, Massachusetts 01880 Dear Attorney Harvey: I have received the petition of Kylie Smith appealing the response of the Board of Registration in Medicine (Board) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § lOA; 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, Ms. Smith sought "all lawsuit case docket numbers and location regarding [a n identified physician]." Previous Determination This request was the subject of a previous determination. See SPR20/009 l Determination of the Supervisor of Records (January 28, 2020). In my January 28th Determination, I learned that the Board intended on providing Ms. Smith with a supplemental response. Accordingly, the Board was ordered to provide Ms. Smith with said response in compliance with the Public Records Law and its Access Regulations within ten ( 10) business days. Additional responsive records In her January 31st appeal, Ms. Smith questions why she received only three lawsuits when she claims "[t]he physician has FOUR lawsuits mentioned on his physician profile." The duty to comply with requests for records extends to those records that exist and are in the possession, custody, or control of the custodian of records at the time of the request. G. L. c. 66, § IO(a)(ii). In accordance with the Public Records Law, custodians are expected to use their superior knowledge of the records in their custody to assist requesters in obtaining the desired information. See 950 C.M.R. 32.04(5)(b) . The Board must confirm whether it possesses additional responsive records and provide such response in compliance with the Public Records Law and its Regulations. One Ashburton Place, Room 1719, Boston, Massachusetts 02108 • (617) 727-2832• Fax: (617) 727-5914 sec.state.ma.us/pre• pre@sec.state.ma.us

Robe1i E. Harvey, Esq. SPR20/0189 Page 2 February 12, 2020 Order Subsequent to the intervention of a member of the Public Records Division staff, I learned the Board intends on providing Ms. Smith with a response in regard to the existence of additional responsive records. Accordingly, said response must be provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law, and its Regulations within 10 business days. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of this response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us. Ms. Smith may appeal the substantive nature of the Board's response within ninety days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Kylie Smith