Rule 16.501 General rule

Here's a plain English summary of this rule:

Court documents filed in Iowa are open to the public. This is true whether they're filed on paper or electronically. Filing something through the electronic system doesn't change who can see it.

There are two exceptions. Some documents are "system restricted," meaning the court system itself limits who can view them. Others are "filed with restricted access," meaning someone asked the court to keep them private and the court agreed. Unless one of these exceptions applies, anyone can look at what's been filed in a case.

The main point of this rule is simple: going digital doesn't make court records more private. If a document would have been public on paper, it's still public when filed electronically.