Rule 8.52 Confidential and Sealed Attachments

If you are filing a document with the Oregon appeals court and it includes an attachment that is legally required to stay private (whether by state law or a judge's order), you have to flag it clearly. This applies to things like mediation records, HIV testing information, presentence reports, medical records from state institutions, child abuse investigation records, civil commitment records, and drug or alcohol treatment records.

To flag it, you need to do two things. First, put the words "Includes Confidential Attachment" or "Includes Sealed Attachment" right on the caption of your filing, where it's easy to see. Second, somewhere in the filing itself, you need to write a short statement explaining which law or court order makes that attachment confidential or sealed.

This rule exists so that court staff and other people involved in the case know right away that part of the filing needs special handling. It also makes sure there's a clear paper trail showing why that information is being protected, instead of just leaving it unexplained. If you're filing electronically, there are separate instructions in ORAP 16.15(5)(b) for how to actually submit these sealed or confidential attachments.