Michigan Laws 397.604 – Violation of MCL 397.603; liability; civil action; damages; attorney fees and costs; equitable relief
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Terms Used In Michigan Laws 397.604
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. Source: U.S. Courts
- Library: means a library that is established by this state or by a county, city, township, village, school district, or other local unit of government or authority or combination of local units of governments and authorities, a community college district, or a college or university, or a private library open to the public. See Michigan Laws 397.602
- Library record: means a document, record, or other method of storing information retained by a library that contains information that personally identifies a library patron, including the patron's name, address, or telephone number, or that identifies a person as having requested or obtained specific materials from a library. See Michigan Laws 397.602
- person: may extend and be applied to bodies politic and corporate, as well as to individuals. See Michigan Laws 8.3l
(1) If a library or an employee or agent of a library violates section 3, the library is subject to liability to the person identified in a library record that is improperly released or disclosed. The person identified in the library record may bring a civil action against the library for actual damages or $250.00, whichever is greater, reasonable attorney fees, and the costs of bringing the action. A court also may grant equitable relief to a person under this subsection.
(2) If an employee or agent of a library knowingly violates section 3, the employee or agent is subject to liability to the person identified in a library record that is improperly released or disclosed. The person identified in the library record may bring a civil action against the employee or agent for actual damages or $250.00, whichever is greater, reasonable attorney fees, and the costs of bringing the action. A court also may grant equitable relief to a person under this subsection.
(3) A civil action brought under this section by or on behalf of a person identified in a library record must be brought within 180 days after the date that the person first knew or had reason to know of the release or disclosure of the record giving rise to the civil action.