Reuters, Dow Jones file motion to unseal records in ZTE case

Reuters and Dow Jones filed a motion to unseal records in the U.S. case against China's ZTE Corp on Monday, arguing that secrecy does not serve the public interest.

One of the world's top telecommunications equipment makers, ZTE, pleaded guilty in 2017 to conspiring to violate U.S. export laws by illegally shipping U.S. goods to Iran.

As part of a deal with the prosecutors, the company paid $892 million in penalties and agreed to probation and monitoring for three years, a term that was extended another two years before ending in March.

Over the probationary period, almost all of the cases were kept from the public.

The news organizations wrote in their motion to intervene and unload the records, that the business of this case has been conducted in near-total secrecy for approximately five years. The press and the public are not interested in access, and this is a stark contrast to the public's weighty interest in access. The news outlets are represented by the Washington-based Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, which has a right to access under common law and the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

The filing states that both ZTE and U.S. prosecutors have indicated they oppose the motion to unseal. A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Justice declined to respond to a request for comment, and the company didn't respond immediately to a request for comment.

The sealed records contain reports by a monitor who is tasked with evaluating the company's compliance with U.S. export control laws. Under a 2017 agreement on the monitor attached to the plea deal, all reports, submissions, or other materials will be filed under seal and all court proceedings will be conducted in camera. Sources said the monitors' bills could run to millions of dollars a month.

In 2017, Reuters reported that Dallas lawyer James Stanton lacked experience in the U.S. export controls when he was appointed by his self-described mentor, U.S. District Court Judge Ed Kinkeade, the Texas judge who presided over the case.

A filing related to Stanton's appointment is among those under seal.

Stanton did not reply to a request for comment on Monday and the judge's chambers said he was not expected back until next week. In 2017, Stanton and Kinkeade did not respond to requests for comment from Reuters.