Court Decisions Overview
Each year the federal courts issue hundreds of decisions in FOIA cases, addressing all aspects of the law. These decisions shape the way the law is interpreted and applied by the many attorneys and access professionals across the government who handle FOIA requests, administrative appeals, and litigation. To aid those professionals, and to facilitate greater understanding of the FOIA overall, OIP posts summaries of FOIA decisions to this website.
Although we have designed these summaries to reflect the key aspects of each decision, by their nature these are summaries only, and such things as internal citations and quotations have been omitted. Our goal is to provide readers with an overview of the cases as they are decided during the year, but for a complete understanding of any given case readers are, of course, encouraged to read it in its entirety.
Using the Court Decisions Page
This website includes decisions decided since January 2013. Summaries of decisions decided between May 2009 and December 2012 are available in the Court Decisions Archive. All decisions are presented chronologically, based on the date of issuance, with the most recent decision appearing first. Each decision is tagged topically with the relevant exemption or procedural consideration addressed.
You can view all decisions tagged with a particular topic or court by using the “Topic” drop down menu. For example, to see all cases where Exemption 5 is addressed, select “Exemption 5.”
You can search through each decision summary for keywords or phrases using the “Keyword Search” feature. For example, to see all cases with a particular term, such as “e-mail” or “affirming,” you can type in the term or phrase to retrieve all court decision summaries where it appears. You can also use this feature to locate decisions from a particular court by searching for the court acronym, such as “D.C. Cir” for all decisions from the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
Stevens v. HHS, No. 22-5072, 2024 WL 4007684 (N.D. Ill. Aug. 30, 2024) (Kennelly, J.)
Stevens v. HHS, No. 22-5072, 2024 WL 4007684 (N.D. Ill. Aug. 30, 2024) (Kennelly, J.)
Re: Requests for records concerning: 1) Congresswoman Lauren Underwood and potential development of an Electronic Health Record (“EHR”) system at DHS; and 2) citizen against whom, plaintiff believes, ICE mistakenly issued deportation order
Disposition: Granting in part and denying in part one defendant’s motion...
Popov v. DHS, No. 23-09001, 2024 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 156788 (C.D. Cal. Aug. 30, 2024) (Birotte, Jr., J.)
Popov v. DHS, No. 23-09001, 2024 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 156788 (C.D. Cal. Aug. 30, 2024) (Birotte, Jr., J.)
Re: Request for records concerning third-party’s naturalization efforts
Disposition: Granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment; denying plaintiff’s cross-motion for summary judgment
- Exemption 6: The court holds that “Defendant properly withheld the third party’s A-File records pursuant to...
Bahrampour v. NSA, No. 24-1202, 2024 WL 3983955 (4th Cir. Aug. 29, 2024) (per curiam)
Bahrampour v. NSA, No. 24-1202, 2024 WL 3983955 (4th Cir. Aug. 29, 2024) (per curiam)
Re: Requests for certain records concerning requester
Disposition: Affirming district court’s grant of government’s motion for summary judgment
- Exemption 1; Exemption 3; Procedural Requirements, Proper FOIA Requests: “[The Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has] reviewed the record and find[s] no reversible...
Louise Trauma Ctr. LLC v. USCIS, No. 23-1561, 2024 WL 3964761 (D. Md. Aug. 28, 2024) (Bennett, S.J.)
Louise Trauma Ctr. LLC v. USCIS, No. 23-1561, 2024 WL 3964761 (D. Md. Aug. 28, 2024) (Bennett, S.J.)
Re: Requests concerning certain training and evaluation material
Disposition: Granting in part and denying in part plaintiff’s motion for attorney fees and costs; awarding plaintiff $21,090 in attorney fees and $402 in costs
- Attorney Fees, Eligibility: The court notes that “USCIS does not dispute...
Tower v. CBP, No. 23-204, 2024 WL 3967322 (D.D.C. Aug. 28, 2024) (Bates, J.)
Tower v. CBP, No. 23-204, 2024 WL 3967322 (D.D.C. Aug. 28, 2024) (Bates, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning CBP’s and plaintiff’s union’s actions after plaintiff resigned his union membership, specifically including certain third-party communications
Disposition: Denying defendant’s motion for summary judgment; granting in part and denying in part plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment
- Exempti...
Reclaim the Records v. U.S. Dep’t of State, No. 23-1529, 2024 WL 3938296 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 26, 2024) (Caproni, J.)
Reclaim the Records v. U.S. Dep’t of State, No. 23-1529, 2024 WL 3938296 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 26, 2024) (Caproni, J.)
Re: Request for “‘the Index or finding aid to the Reports of Death of a U.S. Citizen Abroad’” from 1975 to present
Disposition: Granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment; denying plaintiffs’ cross-motion for summary judgment
- Litigation Considerations, Adequacy of Search: The court...
Am. Wild Horse Campaign v. U.S. Bureau of Land Mgmt., No. 22-3061, 2024 WL 3967256 (D.D.C. Aug. 26, 2024) (Cooper, J.)
Am. Wild Horse Campaign v. U.S. Bureau of Land Mgmt., No. 22-3061, 2024 WL 3967256 (D.D.C. Aug. 26, 2024) (Cooper, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning handling of plaintiff’s report on purported inhumane treatment of animals in defendant’s care
Disposition: Denying plaintiff’s motion for attorney fees and costs
- Attorney Fees, Eligibility: The court holds that “[plaintiff] has not met that...
Jankowski v. CIA, No. 23-3111, 2024 WL 3937136 (D. Neb. Aug. 26, 2024) (Bataillon, S.J.)
Jankowski v. CIA, No. 23-3111, 2024 WL 3937136 (D. Neb. Aug. 26, 2024) (Bataillon, S.J.)
Re: Request for records concerning plaintiff’s employment application
Disposition: Following initial review of plaintiff’s complaint, allowing plaintiff to file amended complaint stating a plausible claim for relief under FOIA
- Litigation Considerations, Pleadings & Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies: The...
Mullane v. DOJ, No. 23-1094, 2024 WL 3912197 (1st Cir. Aug. 23, 2024) (Montecalvo, J.)
Mullane v. DOJ, No. 23-1094, 2024 WL 3912197 (1st Cir. Aug. 23, 2024) (Montecalvo, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning the requester
Disposition: Affirming district court’s grant of government’s motion for summary judgment
- Litigation Considerations, Evidentiary Showing, Adequacy of Search: The Court of Appeals for the First Circuit holds that “DOJ conducted an adequate search for...
Jud. Watch, Inc. v. HHS, No. 22-3051, 2024 WL 3924563 (D.D.C. Aug. 23, 2024) (Friedrich, J.)
Jud. Watch, Inc. v. HHS, No. 22-3051, 2024 WL 3924563 (D.D.C. Aug. 23, 2024) (Friedrich, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning human fetal tissue collection
Disposition: Granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment; denying plaintiff’s cross-motion for summary judgment
- Exemption 6: The court holds that “NIH properly withheld the names and titles of the two signatories of [a] [l]etter...