A settlement was reached Friday between The Ames Tribune and the Iowa State Daily, ending a three-year legal dispute between the two papers.

Under the agreement, the Daily publication board will contribute $50,000 to a scholarship fund.

The Daily also is required to reimburse Partnership Press, Inc., the parent company of The Tribune, for its legal costs. The payment of $40,000 will be made in eight equal quarterly installments.

The legal struggle stemmed from a dispute between The Tribune and the Daily about open record laws.

In 1997, a judge sided with The Tribune, saying that because of the Daily’s affiliation with the university, the paper was a government body and as such was subject to the state’s open record laws. The Daily had appealed the decision and was scheduled to go before the Iowa Supreme Court this Friday.

Ryan Kay, president of the Daily Publication Board, said the settlement was not a surprise and he hoped the agreement would be a new beginning for the two papers.

“It will form a new relationship between the Daily and Partnership Press,” said Kay, senior in agricultural business. “They can use some of our assets, and they can help us in educating students.”

Kay also said the settlement will allow the Daily staff to focus.

“Now we can just publish the best Iowa State Daily that we can,” he said. “We can concentrate on other things than lawsuits and settlement talks.”

Both sides expressed their relief that a settlement has been reached.

“This is a good and fair settlement,” said Gary Gerlach, publisher of The Tribune. “I think that it is about time that we put this behind us.”

Annette Forbes, general manager of the Daily, agreed that the settlement will allow both papers to look forward.

“I think it is what we needed to do after three years of court battles; it is time to finally lay it to rest,” she said. “We are glad that this will be finally behind us.”

Forbes said because of the Daily’s affiliation with ISU, “concessions had to be made, and we understand that.”

Gerlach said the scholarship fund will be set up by the Iowa Journalism Institute, which was founded by him and his late partner, David Berlin.

“The funds will be paid over the next three years, and the funds will be used to award a scholarship to a student majoring in journalism and hopefully, a graduate of an Iowa high school,” he said.