The state of Georgia won't publicly release its legal bills or contracts with outside counsel hired to defend the state's claims at the U.S. Supreme Court that its annotated legal code is copyrighted.

Attorneys in the state's Office of Legislative Counsel said they won't release the documents for outside counsel at Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, Vinson & Elkins and Meunier, Carlin & Curfman because the Georgia General Assembly is exempt from the state public records statute, a claim that is currently being appealed to the state Supreme Court.

Legislative Counsel Rick Ruskell said a Fulton County Superior Court judge and the Georgia Court of Appeals have affirmed the open records exemption, but the Institute for Justice has petitioned the Supreme Court of Georgia to hear its appeal. The high court has yet to decide whether to take the unrelated case.