A reader of my blog pointed out to a problem with trial exhibits that occurred in the reader's court case (reader is pro se, the opponent is represented by a "connected" attorney).
The story goes this way:
the reader was allowed by the judge, as well as opposing attorney, to submit to the judge, after a bench trial, a written summation.
The reader wanted to review trial exhibits (the reader's and the opponent's) to rely upon in the summation.
The court clerk told the reader that (1) the reader could not have access to trial exhibits, but that (2) the opposing party's attorney not only could have access to trial exhibits, but could and did take the trial exhibits out of the court's custody and into the attorney's office.
After the reader took an issue with such inequality of treatment, he was actually given access to trial exhibits, after the opposing attorney returned it to the court.
While reviewing the exhibits, the reader found that exhibits, upon the reader's recollection, were re-marked and re-labeled, the markings put on the exhibits by the stenographer were moved from one exhibit to another.
That's why it is very important to have the list of exhibits created immediately as the trial progresses and have the court clerk file that list of exhibits for public access, or, if the record of the case is private, for access by the parties and their attorneys immediately on conclusion of the trial, and not after the judge makes his or her decision on the case.
That prevents tampering with exhibits and preserves the record for purposes of the appeal - if anybody in the court system is genuinely concerned about these issues.
Yet, the issue remains in that particular case that the trial exhibits for BOTH sides were not given (at least, at first) to a pro se party and were released out of the custody of the court into the custody of the opposing attorney without any record in the court files of doing that - and were returned from the custody of that attorney relabeled, or, in other words, there is a likelihood that the opposing attorney or somebody in that attorney's office tampered with public records, a crime in the State of New York.
Apparently, since that attorney misconduct occurred with the help of the court personnel, and since the attorney in question is one of the "connected" attorneys, I doubt that any discipline will be imposed on any participants in what has happened.
Yet, that's why I suggest to my readers that any and all telephone conversations with court clerks about their cases must be audio-recorded. Otherwise, you will never be able to prove that access was denied to you and given to the opposing party.
When you record, you at least have an opportunity to catch court clerks unaware, and have them blurp out the truth before their superiors coach them how to lie.
As it happened recently in my case where NYS Court Administration attempted to deny what was already recorded and published, see here (with links to audio recordings) and here (with a full copy of a letter from NYS Court Administration blatantly denying that I was denied access to trial exhibits by the court clerk at the direction of Judge Kevin Dowd and that the court clerk, and not the County Clerk, had possession of those exhibits at all times after the trial, even though the County Clerk should have had them) - as an illustration of how court personnel lies to protect judges committing misconduct.
Once again - only recordings can prove court personnel is lying to protect their jobs and to protect judges who they think they serve (instead of the public who they are hired to be serving, and paid to be serving).
It is lawful in New York to record conversations secretly, as long as the recording person is a party to that conversation.
So - insist on having a list of trial exhibits right at the end of the trial.
Insist on having that list particularly describe marked and admitted exhibits.
Insist on review of trial exhibits in preparation of your written summations, if such are allowed.
Note if trial exhibits were allowed by court personnel to leave the court's custody and go to the custody of "connected" attorneys.
Be vigilant as to the state of exhibits as they are returned from such attorneys' offices, if that happened - look for signs of tampering, document them, photograph them, write about tampering to the court before the court made its decision based on such exhibits.
Preserve your rights. yourselves. The court personnel sure wouldn't do that for you, at least in New York courts.
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