UPDATE: Senate Judiciary Panel Approves Shield Law By 13-5 Vote; Full Senate to Decide

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The Senate Judiciary Committee today voted 13-5 in favor of the Free Flow of Information Act of 2013 (S. 987), setting the stage for a full Senate vote on a federal shield law to protect journalists' confidential sources and information.

According to accounts in The Washington Post and Huffington Post, the Committee, which was unable reach a consensus on the bill before summer recess (See "TUOL" post 8/2/13), found a compromise between Sen. Charles Schumer's (D.-N.Y.) broad definition of a journalist and Sen. Dianne Feinstein's (D.-Calif.) narrow interpretation of who should be protected by the federal shield law.

The measure sent to the full Senate covers student journalists and "persons whom a federal judge has decided should be able to avail him or herself of the protections of the privilege, consistent with the interests of justice and the protection of lawful and legitimate newsgathering activities."  Groups such as Wikileaks, would not be shielded under the law.

The measure embraces journalists who had an "employment relationship" for one year within the past 20 years, or three months within the past five years, as well as someone with a "substantial track record" of freelance writing in the past five years. If enacted, the law would not provide an absolute privilege to journalists from having to disclose confidential information in all instances.

Federal Shield Law in Limbo Until the Fall

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The Senate Judiciary Committee this week bolstered a proposed federal shield law, the Free Flow of Information Act of 2013 (S. 987), but failed to muster a final voice vote on the measure before adjourning for Congress' summer recess.

Senators were unable to agree on criteria defining who would be a  journalist eligible for protection from having to reveal confidential sources and information to authorities. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) acknowledged that information-gathering has evolved and favored a broader interpretation of journalist, whereas Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D.-Calif.) was wary of bloggers and WikiLeaks and said the shield law should only cover "real reporters."

The Committee did unanimously consent to a "manager's amendment" that requires a judge to rule on whether a notice of a subpoena to a journalist could be delayed and would require a judge to sign off on a 45-day extension of the original 45-day suspension of notice.