Florida AG files shareholder petition seeking New York Times corporate records over editorial standards

DORAL, Fla. - Florida officials filed a shareholder petition in New York state court to force The New York Times Company to allow an inspection of its corporate records. 

Florida retirement fund New York Times petition

The backstory:

Attorney General James Uthmeier, serving as a trustee for the State Board of Administration, filed the petition in the Supreme Court of the State of New York in New York County. 

The action seeks to enforce shareholder inspection rights on behalf of the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund. The state fund represents more than 1.2 million public retirees and active workers who hold shares in the media company. The filing asks the court to verify whether the board maintains internal channels to oversee compliance with its published editorial standards.

Written inspection demand 

Dig deeper:

The State Board of Administration served its initial written inspection demand on Aug. 10 following concerns over corporate governance and brand risk. 

The company denied the request in full on Aug. 21, calling it "pretextual" and invoking the First Amendment. On Aug. 26, Florida state officials voluntarily narrowed the request to focus exclusively on board-level governance records from 2020 forward. 

During a conference on Sept. 1, company attorneys stated the media outlet would produce no documents. The narrowed request excludes reporter notes, unpublished drafts, source identities, and editorial deliberations. 

Published corrections and editorial notes

By the numbers:

State officials cited several instances where the newspaper issued public corrections following outside feedback: 

• In October 2023, an editors' note acknowledged that early coverage of a hospital explosion relied too heavily on claims by Hamas.
• A peer-reviewed study identified 72 errors admitted in the newspaper's corrections column within a single coverage area over an eight-month span.
• On Sept. 14, correspondent Isabel Kershner published a story about a documentary called NAZA that was later changed to remove a line about Israeli victims following outside criticism.

Public servant pension protection

What they're saying:

Florida leaders stressed that the legal action aims to protect public servant investments. 

"Florida’s more than 1.2 million public retirees are shareholders of The New York Times," Attorney General James Uthmeier said. "The company itself tells investors that a perception of unreliable or biased journalism is a material risk to its most valuable asset. We asked a straightforward question: does the board oversee compliance with the company’s own published standards? The company refused to produce a single page." 

Law enforcement representatives also supported the state's petition. 

"No corporation should be above accountability—especially when the financial futures of Florida’s public servants may be affected," Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office Chief Rita Rodriguez said. 

South Florida Police Benevolent Association President Steadman Stahl praised the state's legal oversight. 

"Thanks to the bold leadership of Attorney General Uthmeier, Florida’s public servants can rest assured that the FRS will remain sound and fiscally responsible," Stahl said. 

The legal filing does not seek financial damages or assert claims against individual directors, and it does not ask the court to evaluate editorial choices. 

Supreme Court special proceeding

What's next:

The special proceeding will move forward in the Supreme Court of the State of New York under state business corporation law. 

Florida