CBS Seeks Ch. 11 Voice In Hertz False Arrest Doc Fight

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CBS Broadcasting Inc. moved to intervene Thursday in a Delaware bankruptcy court dispute over sealing of data on years of allegedly bogus auto theft reports filed by The Hertz Corp. said to have led to the arrests of innocent customers.

The filing arrived on the same day that attorneys for two groups of claimants in Hertz’s now confirmed Chapter 11 asked U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Mary F. Walrath to deny the seal motion, filed by a post-Chapter 11 confirmation Hertz affiliate. The attorneys branded the company’s position as both unsupportable and inconsistent with earlier public statements.

CBS argued that the First Amendment to the Constitution and common law provide a public right to the information. The media outlet also asserted that the Third Circuit Court of Appeals has “routinely found … that third parties have standing to challenge protective orders and confidentiality orders in an effort to obtain access to information on judicial proceedings.”