Trade-secret ruling awaited in UI case

A Johnson County district judge’s ruling is expected in the coming weeks in the lawsuit brought by Rocky Mountain Holdings, the provider of helicopter ambulances at University of Iowa Hospitals, against the university.

The company is seeking a court ruling that its contract with the UI and the operating agreement between the company and the hospitals are a confidential trade secret under Iowa’s open records law.

The Cedar Rapids Gazette has intervened in the case, making the case why the contract and agreement need to be released publicly upon request.

The Gazette’s request for the documents earlier this year led to the lawsuit seeking the declaratory ruling.

Here is the Gazette’s legal brief to the Johnson County court: Gazette.Brief.on.Injunction

Here is a Gazette news article that lays out the background and the issues at stake in the case: Gazette.Helicopters