This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.
Courts and the people who work for them cannot be sued or held legally responsible if they accidentally share information that should have been kept private. This covers judges, court clerks, their staff, and anyone working on behalf of the court.
This protection only applies when the disclosure was a mistake. If a judge, clerk, or court employee didn't know the information was confidential, or didn't mean to share it, they are protected from liability. This encourages courts to do their jobs without fear of being punished for honest mistakes, while still expecting them to handle sensitive information carefully.
For people involved in a case, this means that if your private information gets released by accident, you generally cannot sue the court or its staff over that mistake. The rule protects the court system itself, not people who intentionally misuse or leak confidential records.
