Arguments in Richmond Newspapers v. Virginia show how courtroom openness relates to fairness, accountability, and public trust in justice, insights not visible in the ruling itself.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision recognized a First Amendment right for the public & press to attend criminal trials.
Such perspectives are now possible through 125,000 #SCOTUS records made accessible through a donation from the Wolf Law Library at @WMLawSchool.
Learn more ⤵️
blog.archive.org/2026/04/20/…#SupremeCourt#DemocracysLibrary
ALT The top portion of the first page of legal filing in Richmond Newspapers, Inc. v. Commonwealth of Virginia, Supreme Court of the United States, October Term 1979, Case No. 79-243. A Supreme Court filing stamp in the upper right corner shows the document was received on September 22, 1979, by clerk Michael Rodak Jr. The appellants are listed as Richmond Newspapers, Inc., Timothy B. Wheeler, and Kevin McCarthy, with the Commonwealth of Virginia as appellee. The document notes two companion cases.
ALT The official seal of the United States Supreme Court, featuring a circular design with the words “Supreme Court of the United States” surrounding a central emblem of a balanced scale of justice and a laurel wreath, symbolizing law, authority, and fairness.
ALT Monogram of William & Mary Law School featuring a white intertwined “W&M” topped by a crown, referencing the university’s royal charter.
ALT A large hand-drawn sketchnote recorded by Jasmin Pamukcu summarizing a Birds of a Feather session, with five topic areas including coordination & funding, legislation & policy, data rescue & archival practice, and infrastructure & tools, captured in colorful illustrated bubbles and banners.
The arguments behind every landmark Supreme Court ruling have never been freely available to the public… until now.
Thanks to a gift from the Wolf Law Library at William & Mary Law School, more than 125,000 #SCOTUS records & briefs are now freely freely available on the Internet Archive, spanning 1830 through 2019. The arguments that shaped America, including Brown v. Board of Education. Loving v. Virginia.
Read the full announcement ⤵️
blog.archive.org/2026/04/20/…@WMLawSchool#SupremeCourt#DemocracysLibrary
ALT The official seal of the United States Supreme Court, featuring a circular design with the words “Supreme Court of the United States” surrounding a central emblem of a balanced scale of justice and a laurel wreath, symbolizing law, authority, and fairness.
ALT Monogram of William & Mary Law School featuring a white intertwined “W&M” topped by a crown, referencing the university’s royal charter.
Exciting news in the world of digital preservation! 🇨🇦 Internet Archive Canada @internetarcCA is teaming up with CGI-DPN for #DemocracysLibrary. Together, they're working to safeguard Canada's government publications for generations to come. Learn more 👉 internetarchivecanada.org/20…
ALT Internet Archive Canada and the CGI Network partner to preserve government information
As part of the #DemocracysLibrary initiative, Internet Archive Canada is collaborating with the Canadian Government Information Digital Preservation Network (CGI-DPN) to ensure comprehensive web preservation of Canada’s government publications. internetarchivecanada.org/20…
Thanks to @DemocracyLab for bringing together a wonderful group of volunteers to work on new visualizations/descriptions for some @internetarchive collections this weekend! #DemocracysLibrary
ALT "Finding governmental records about public policy matters should not be a barrier to becoming an informed participant..."
Sharon Hammond, The Society Library