Court opinions issued Oct. 15, 2020

Petrucelli v. DOJ (D.D.C.) -- determining on renewed summary judgment that Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys performed adequate search for certain records pertaining to plaintiff’s criminal case.

Whittaker v. DOJ (D.D.C.) -- concluding on renewed summary judgment that FBI properly withheld results of plaintiff’s “National Agency Check” pursuant to Exemption 7(E),

Block v. FTC (D. Mass.) -- ruling that: (1) agency failed to provide sufficient information to permit court to determine whether records pertaining to agency’s 2019 settlement with Facebook were properly withheld pursuant to Exemption 4; (2) agency properly relied on Exemption 7(C) to withhold identifying information of Facebook employees and of individuals “of investigative interest,” except for CEO Mark Zuckerberg, whose investigation was officially acknowledged by two FTC Commissioners.

Summaries of all published opinions issued since April 2015 are available here.

FOIA News: Office of National Drug Control Policy implements new FOIA regulations

The Office of National Drug Control Policy, a component of the Executive Office of the President, published a final rule in today’s issue of the Federal Register implementing new FOIA regulations. The updates are intended to comport with the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 and revised best practices. THe new regulations are effective October 19, 2020.

FOIA News: Federal Reserve to update FOIA regs

The Federal Reserve has issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that would amend the Federal Open Market Committee’s FOIA procedures. Comments may be submitted on or before December 14, 2020.

FOIA News: PBGC to revise FOIA regs

On October 13, 2020, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation issued a proposed rule that would amend the agency’s FOIA regulations. Comments will be accepted through December 14, ,2020.

FOIA News: ICYMI, DOJ updates two sections of FOIA Guide

The Department of Justice’s Office of Information Policy recently updated two section of its Guide to the Freedom of Information Act: Exemption 2, which was updated on September 29, 2020; and Fees and Fee Waivers, which was updated on September 16, 2020.

FOIA News: DOJ tells court that Trump tweet was not a declassification order

DOJ: Trump's 'total declassification' of Russiagate docs has no effect

DOJ attorneys told a judge that the White House Counsel's Office effectively told DOJ to disregard Trump's tweets on the matter.

By Kyle Cheney, Politico, Oct. 13, 2020

What happened: When Donald Trump tweeted last week that he authorized the "total declassification of any & all documents" related to the long-running Russia investigation and Hillary Clinton's emails — "No redactions!" he tweeted — he really didn't mean it, the Justice Department argued in court Tuesday.

DOJ attorneys told a judge that the White House Counsel's Office effectively told DOJ to disregard Trump's tweets on the matter. They weren't accompanied by an actual declassification order, and DOJ will proceed as though the tweets hadn't occurred, continuing to redact and release documents at its discretion.

Read more here.

Court opinions issued Oct. 9, 2020

Freedom of Press Found. v. DOJ (S.D.N.Y.) -- finding that: (1) FBI performed adequate search for records relating to surveillance of news media and that it properly withheld records pursuant to Exemptions 1, 3, and 7(E); and (2) DOJ’s Criminal Division improperly relied on Exemption 5’s deliberative process privilege to withhold training slide and official instruction form.

Long v. ICE (N.D.N.Y.) -- ruling that ICE failed to establish that it performed adequate search for certain records pertaining to agency’s use of detainers and notices of release, and that it failed to establish that search for requested information would require creating new records or would be unduly burdensome.

Summaries of all published opinions issued since April 2015 are available here.

Court opinion issued Oct. 8, 2020

Shapiro v. DOJ (D.D.C.) -- denying plaintiff’s request to reconsider court’s July 2, 2020 opinion, noting that plaintiff failed to identify a legal basis for its motion and concluding that none existed.

Summaries of all published opinions issued since April 2015 are available here.

FOIA News: Trump tweet may lead to more Mueller Report disclosures

Judge orders DOJ to say whether Trump declassification tweets mean full Mueller report should be disclosed

By Jerry Dunleavy, Wash. Exam’r, Oct. 9, 2020

The federal judge handling a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit seeking access to an unredacted version of former special counsel Robert Mueller’s report ordered the Justice Department to speak with the White House about whether President Trump’s recent tweets about Russia-related declassifications mean the 448-page report should be released in full.

Read more here.

FOIA News: OIP is hiring FOIA attorneys

The Department of Justice’s Office of Information Policy (OIP) is looking to hire “multiple FOIA Attorneys to work on OIP’s Administrative Appeals Staff,” according to a vacancy announcement issued on October 8, 2020. The application deadline is October 29, 2020.