Hidden data embedded in electronic public records must be disclosed under Arizona's public records law, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday in a case that attracted interest from media and government organizations.

The Supreme Court's unanimous decision overturned lower courts' rulings and is one of the first decisions by a state appellate court on whether a public records law applies to so-called "metadata" — data about data.

Metadata can show how and when a document was created or revised and by whom. The information isn't visible when a document is printed on paper nor does it appear on screen in normal settings.

"It would be illogical, and contrary to the policy of openness underlying the public records law, to conclude that public entities can withhold information embedded in an electronic document, such as the date of creation, while they would be required to produce the same information if it were written manually on a paper public records," Justice Scott Bales wrote.

A Washington state appellate court ruled last year that metadata in e-mail received by a city's deputy mayor was a public record under Washington's public records law.

Luke James Stobie, Attorney at Law, has been accepting clients since Oct. 1 at his new general practice law firm at 10702 Manchester Road, Suite 208, in Kirkwood.

The Stobie Law Firm, LLC is a general practice law firm that provides effective, vigorous representation on a primarily flat fee basis. Areas of practice include, but are not limited to: wills/estate planning, criminal defense, traffic tickets, DWI defense, business law, divorce, civil litigation, and Second Amendment law.

Stobie practices primarily on a flat fee basis. Clients pay a set amount for their case even if the matter takes more time than expected. Stobie said clients will never be surprised by an unexpected bill or have to worry about how much a pone call to discuss their matter will cost.

Initial consultations are free and have no commitment. Stobie, a graduate of Kirkwood High School and Saint Louis University School of Law, opened the Stobie Law Firm to provide affordable general practice legal services to the St. Louis area.

For more information, call 856-9645 or visit www.stobielaw.com.

A 53-year-old Georgia man has pleaded guilty to resisting police outside the set of a Miley Cyrus movie after prosecutors agreed to drop charges that he tried to stalk the teen pop star.

A State Court judge sentenced Mark McLeod (MIK-lowd) to 24 months probation Friday. He was also ordered to undergo a mental health assessment and stay away from Cyrus.

McLeod had been jailed since Aug. 4 after police said he twice traveled to Tybee Island on the Georgia coast looking for the 16-year-old "Hannah Montana" star as she filmed the movie "The Last Song." Investigators said he resisted officers who tried to remove him.

Prosecutors offered McLeod a deal after a grand jury declined to indict him on felony charges.

McLeod's attorney says his client never posed a threat.

The Milwaukee-based office of Foley & Lardner LLP says the law firm has received a $208 million contract from the National Institutes of Health.

Foley says the contract calls for it to provide intellectual-property services for up to 10 years.

The law firm says it will begin performing work this month on issues related to biotechnology patents, as well as to patents for mechanical, electrical and software technology.

The firm says lawyers in its Boston, San Diego, Madison and Washington, D.C. offices will work on the contract. Its intellectual-property practice has nearly 240 attorneys.

The NIH is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting medical research.

The NCAA's bid to delay a court order to release its records on academic cheating at Florida State was rejected Tuesday by the Florida Supreme Court.

In a terse one-sentence order, the high court denied the NCAA's emergency motion. However, that decision does not preclude them from considering the merits of the case later.

Attorneys for the NCAA provided the records to a Tallahassee law firm to prepare for release, although they aren't expected to vary much from documents already made public by Florida State University. The school released copies earlier this month from "screen shots" of documents posted on a secure, read-only Web site, but not the originals.

The Associated Press and other media sought immediate release after an appelate court on Oct. 13 upheld an earlier ruling that the documents are public records. A circuit judge last week ordered the NCAA to release the documents by 2 p.m. Wednesday unless it could win a stay.

The AP sued to get the records on the college athletics governing body's plan to strip coaches and athletes of wins in 10 sports.

Longtime football coach Bobby Bowden stands to lose 14 victories that would make it difficult for him to overtake Penn State's Joe Paterno in their race to be major college football's winningest coach. Paterno now leads with 390 victories to 385 for Bowden, who hopes to hang on long enough to reach 400.

Texas' highest criminal court has thrown out the 25-year prison sentence a Houston jury gave a woman convicted of murder for stabbing her tied-up husband 193 times.

Susan Wright was convicted in March 2004 of killing her 34-year-old husband, Jeffrey Wright. His body was found buried in the yard behind their Harris County home.

Susan Wright, a former topless dancer, contended she acted in self-defense after years of abuse.

In a ruling Wednesday, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals says her lawyers were deficient during the punishment phase of the trial.

An attorney for Wright did not immediately return a call from The Associated Press seeking comment.