MARVIN MANDEL, Governor                                 47

UNLESS OTHERWISE PROVIDED BY LAW OR   ORDER OF

COURT, ANY PERSON MAY _L WITHOUT CHARGE,     INSPECT,

EXAMINE, AND MAKE MEMORANDA OR NOTES FROM AN   INDEX OR
PAPER FILED WITH THE CLERK OF A COURT.

REVISOR'S NOTE: This section is new language
derived from Art. 10, §9. The section
presently permits free inspection only by
attorneys or their agents. This limitation
directly contravenes the mandate of Art.
76A which allows inspection of public
records by "any person". Art. 76A, §1(a)
defines public records quite broadly and
apparently includes court records. The
section, as revised, conforms to Art. 76A.
Art. 76A imposes a duty on the custodian of
the records to make them available for
public inspection, therefore, no such duty
is imposed here. An exception is included
for juvenile court records and other
records ordered sealed by the court. See
§§3-838 and 4-521 (c) of this article.

The section is expanded to apply to the
district and appellate courts as well as
the circuit courts.

The provisions of §9 applicable to the
Registers of Wills and the Commissioner of
the Land Office will not be repealed and
are allocated to Art. 93 and Art. 54,
respectively. (Commissioner of Land
Patents)

It should be noted that this section only
allows inspection and note taking from
records, and in no way limits a clerk from
charging a fee for making a copy. See
§2-201.

SEC. 2-204. OFFICE HOURS.

THE OFFICE OF EVERY CLERK OF COURT SHALL BE
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC FOR THE TRANSACTION OF BUSINESS OF
THE COURT FROM AT LEAST MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY OF EACH
WEEK. EACH CLERK'S OFFICE SHALL BE OPEN DURING THE
HOURS AND ON THE ADDITIONAL DAYS PRESCRIBED BY THE
JUDGE EXERCISING THE FUNCTIONS OF ADMINISTRATIVE
JUDGE.

THE OFFICE SHALL NOT BE OPEN ON LEGAL HOLIDAYS