FOIA Advisor

Court opinions issued Feb. 13-14, 2024

Court Opinions (2024)Allan BlutsteinComment

Feb. 14, 2024

Sherven v. Nat’l Reconnaissance Office (D.D.C.) -- granting government’s summary judgment motion after finding that NRO performed reasonable search for records pertaining to plaintiff, including records of any use of spy satellites against him.

Feb. 13, 2024

Am. for Prosperity Found. v. CMS (D.D.C.) -- deciding that: (1) all of D.C. Circuit’s requirements for relying on an ex parte declaration had been met; and (2) agency sufficiently demonstrated that three-decades old information protected by the attorney-client privileged met the foreseeable harm test.

Anthony v. Fed. Bureau of Prisons (D.D.C.) -- concluding that: (1) BOP properly relied on Exemptions 6 and 7(C) in refusing to confirm or deny the existence of records concerning correctional officer’s misconduct; and (2) BOP properly redacted the names of employees from plaintiff’s administrative complaints pursuant to Exemption 6.

Black Hills Clean Water All. v. United States Forest Serv. (D.S.D.) -- in consolidated cases involving motions for attorney’s fees, ruling that: (1) plaintiff was both eligible and entitled to attorney’s fees in first case, which the agency did not contest; and (2) plaintiff’s lawsuit was unnecessary to obtain requested records in second case, and thus plaintiff was ineligible for attorney’s fees.

Summaries of all published opinions issued in 2024 are available here. Earlier opinions are available here.