A Washington State judge who sued his neighbor because her cat used his back porch as a litter box allegedly persuaded another judge to seal the legal matter so it wouldn't be public.
        
According to news reports, Spokane County Superior Court Judge Michael Price sought a restraining order against his neighbor, Jennifer Tanaka-Fees, after the parties could not amicably resolve the cat dispute. Price claimed the cat urine smell left his back porch uninhabitable.

Eventually the case was settled, and, shortly thereafter, the file was sealed by Patrick Monasmith, a visiting judge from Stevens County.

Now, UCLA Law Professor Eugene Volokh, who claims there is no justification for the sealing, is seeking to have the case unsealed, stating that it violates the 1st Amendment and state law requiring that justice be administered openly. "The public has the right to see what's in this file," Volokh said.

Price's attorney has said he thought the cat dispute was "silly" but that the sealing was intended to protect Price's identity and home address.

"I don't know what we'll find if the file is unsealed," Volokh said. "It may be something bland and banal, or it may be something significant. Either way, it should be public."

In 2005, Price was successful in having his divorce case sealed, records show. Price said it was done as a manner of personal protection.

—Source: LATimes.com