SB 59: Change of name or gender and sex identifier.

This bill expands confidentiality protections for court records related to name and gender changes, regardless of the petitioner's age. It applies these protections to court records associated with separate provisions of existing law for a change of name and to records that were previously made confidential by statute or otherwise. The bill prohibits publicly posting confidential records on the internet or otherwise and authorizes a person or entity to institute proceedings for injunctive relief, declaratory relief, or a writ of mandate to enforce confidentiality requirements. A person or entity found liable for violating confidentiality requirements must pay actual damages, statutory damages, punitive damages, and reasonable attorney's fees and costs. The bill also allows a person who has been harmed by a disclosure or continuing disclosure of records to bring a civil action against th…