COMMERCIAL V. NON-COMMERCIAL PURPOSE (ARIZONA RECORDS)
(Disclaimer: The author is not an attorney, and this article should not be taken as legal advice.)
Every so often I get a call from an investigator or an attorney needing to request records and am asked if they should check the commercial or non-commercial purpose box on the request form. Many investigators and attorneys mistakenly check commercial purpose because they are operating as or under a business. In addition, sometimes a records clerk will inappropriately deny a records request if the requestor checks non-commercial purpose (this recently happened to me when requesting records from a sheriff’s office).
Depending upon if you’re requesting court records or records from a government agency depends on where to find the correct answer to this age-old question. This is because in Arizona, court records are governed by Court Rule 123, and government agency records are governed by the Arizona Public Records Law. Note that the Arizona Public Records Law does not apply to court records (often mistakenly cited by investigators and attorneys).
With respect to public records maintained by a government agency, the answer lies within the last sentence of the definition of commercial purpose in 39-121.03. It reads as follows: “Commercial purpose does not mean the use of a public record as evidence or as research for evidence in an action in any judicial or quasi-judicial body.”
Court Rule 123, the authority with respect to court records in Arizona, also defines commercial purpose and mirrors the Arizona Public Records Law definition. It reads as follows: “Commercial purpose does not mean the use of a public record as evidence or as research for evidence in an action in a judicial or quasi-judicial body of this state or a political subdivision of this state.”
Remember, if requesting records for a non-commercial purpose, you DO NOT have to demonstrate that you are requesting the records for a non-commercial purpose, and you DO NOT have to provide a reason for why you are requesting the records. This is important if working on sensitive matters because your records request can become a public record.