While I understand the human impetus to "go with the flow", I don't like to be a part of the problem, but rather a step in a solution to ensuring transparent government and state functions.  Too often in history, people have stood by and been complacent when their elected officials and public servants have done the wrong things.  Nobody likes it when government spends our tax dollars unwisely, and this is nary different. 

  In this case, I was the intended victim.  The situation had the potential of victimizing my client too, had I not come prepared and taken reasonable, level-headed steps to assert specific rights that are clearly proscribed under the California Public Records Access Act and related federal statute. 

  I've always said that my firms' first duty is to ensure that the rights of our clients are upheld with us acting as vanguards of those rights (whether they are Civilly-proscribed or part and parcel to more fundamental Rights).  For that reason, my partners and I stay abreast of local ordinance, state statute, federal statue and case law.  A fundamental principle of American law is that nobody will assert your rights for you, you must know your rights and be willing to exercise them on your own behalf.

  I see no advantage in gaining "privileged" access, as all it takes is one honest firm to hold a public agency's feet to the fire and all those special perks go away quickly.  God knows that the law IS sufficient for anyone (including the "public") to get timely access to public records.  I doubt that your perceived advantage actually exists and would challenge any "networked" firm to compete with us in exercising our legal rights to accessing documents both in terms of speed and accuracy.  I cannot, in good faith, present my clients with data that is gleaned from "insider" sources when I have not done the work myself, and hence cannot attest to the accuracy, methodology and completness of some nameless bureaucrat passing me data under the table.

  Compromise is actually for the weak, IMHO.  The strong have the courage of their convictions to stand on the virtues of honest business and fair market competition. 

  I am surprised that any (allegedly) good business person would post the information that you posted about your firm.  I'm not sure as to how that information could be interpreted as a glowing testament to your practices, but to each their own. 

  I was neither ejected from the county, nor was I denied any rights that were mine to assert and exercise.  I stepped away with a victory that day.  If I had compromised or complied with harassment and walked away, I might have a client without a completed project and hence fewer funds to reward hard work by my own people.  My legal duty as an officer of my firm would not have been fulfilled.  I don't see that your solution is helpful in any way other than to empower these small dictators to act against the next poor public person to run across them in real life.