Texas Appeals Court Rejects Paxton, Abbott Effort to Evade Accountability and Dismiss American Oversight’s Public Records Lawsuit

Today, a Texas appeals court ruled in favor of nonpartisan watchdog group American Oversight, permitting its lawsuit seeking the release of public records held by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton to proceed.

Abbott and Paxton had appealed a February 2023 ruling by the trial court denying their request to dismiss American Oversight’s lawsuit, which seeks, among other things, email communications with gun industry lobbyists in the aftermath of the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, as well as emails sent by Paxton around the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. The Texas Third Court of Appeals affirmed the lower court’s ruling, stating that the trial court has jurisdiction over the case.

Statement from American Oversight Executive Director Heather Sawyer:

“Today’s ruling is a tremendous victory for transparency in Texas. The appeals court has confirmed that courts have authority to hold the state’s highest-ranking officials — the Governor and Attorney General — accountable under the Texas Public Information Act. American Oversight is seeking records related to matters of significant public interest and the appeals court was correct to reject this effort to evade accountability. We hope that Gov. Abbott and Attorney General Paxton will stop their delay and finally release these records to the public.”

For years, Abbott and Paxton have aggressively avoided releasing public records by claiming records aren’t public or by claiming overly broad exemptions. American Oversight sued Abbott’s and Paxton’s offices in June 2022 to compel the release of documents responsive to seven public records requests made in 2021 and 2022.

Among the records sought in the lawsuit are emails sent by Paxton around the Jan. 6 insurrection, when he spoke at the “Stop the Steal” rally near the White House, as well as work-related communications sent by Abbott or Paxton using non-governmental accounts or devices. In responding to certain requests, their offices claimed that no relevant documents could be found, or that they were justified in withholding all responsive records under attorney-client privilege.

The lawsuit also seeks Abbott’s and Paxton’s communications with the National Rifle Association (NRA) and other pro-gun advocacy groups following the May 24, 2022, massacre in Uvalde. Following the shooting, Abbott canceled an appearance at the NRA convention in Houston, and Paxton dismissed proposals to enact stricter gun control measures. Both Abbott’s and Paxton’s offices claimed that they had no responsive records. In the lawsuit, American Oversight argues that it is implausible that officials in those offices had no contact with such groups at that time — including regarding Abbott’s last-minute cancellation.