Case Detail

FOIA Project Annotation: Judge Robert Wilkins has ruled that the Interior Department properly narrowed Rosemary Hainey's FOIA request for a listing of departmental job vacancies based on a Department of Energy spreadsheet Hainey provided Interior as containing the information she sought and that the agency properly rejected the portion of Hainey's request asking for internal communications on hiring reform as too burdensome. The Department initially told Hainey it would cost more than $100,000 to compile the information on job vacancies. Although the agency wrote to Hainey at the address she had furnished, she did not receive it and did not learn about the agency's prior response until she filed an administrative appeal. After considerable back and forth, the agency agreed to compile the data in a spreadsheet similar to that used by the Energy Department. Although Hainey pointed out that the agency was not obligated to create a record to respond to a FOIA request, she accepted the agency's solution as satisfactory. However, she rejected the agency's suggestion that it provide her with the conclusions of the Department's 2009 hiring reform team instead of processing two years worth of potentially responsive emails of the 25 employees who made up the team. Wilkins found that the agency properly responded to the job vacancy part of the request when it agreed to provide Hainey with the spreadsheet modeled after the Energy Department's response. Wilkins pointed out that "even if Hainey were potentially arguing that the Department should produce additional records in response to this portion of her requestâ€"above and beyond the extensive spreadsheets produced by the Departmentâ€"this argument fails. The Department fully complied with Hainey's modified request, and she cannot now argue that she is entitled to additional records that fall outside the scope of the request as she narrowed it." He indicated that "Hainey continues to insist that the Department should be required to produce the full scope of records sought through her original 'hiring reform' request." He observed that "the Department has demonstrated that responding to the full scope of Hainey's original 'hiring reform' request would require the Department 'to locate, review, redact, and arrange for inspection of a vast quantity of material.' Hainey does not argue otherwiseâ€"indeed, she altogether fails to respond to the Department's burdensomeness arguments. She simply asserts that the Department efforts as to her 'vacancy announcement' request 'are not factors to determine whether it satisfied the unmodified portion of [her] FOIA request'â€"the portion related to 'hiring reform' efforts. That may be so. But that argument says nothing about whether the Department can satisfy her 'hiring reform' request absent an unreasonably burdensome search and review process."
Issues: Request - Specificity

Date Filed	Doc #	Docket Text
2011-09-26	1	COMPLAINT against U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR ( Filing fee $ 350, receipt number 4616042475) filed by ROSEMARY MCBRIDE HAINEY. (Attachments: # 1 Civil Cover Sheet)(rdj) (Entered: 09/27/2011)
2011-09-26		Summons (1) Issued as to U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR. (rdj) (Entered: 09/27/2011)
2011-11-02	2	NOTICE of Appearance by Damarr M. Butler on behalf of U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR (Butler, Damarr) (Entered: 11/02/2011)
2011-11-03	3	RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed as to the United States Attorney. Date of Service Upon United States Attorney on 10/24/2011. Answer due for ALL FEDERAL DEFENDANTS by 11/23/2011. (rdj) (Entered: 11/04/2011)
2011-11-23	4	MOTION for Extension of Time to RESPOND TO PLAINTIFF'S COMPLAINT by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Butler, Damarr) (Entered: 11/23/2011)
2011-11-28	5	ORDER granting 4 MOTION for Extension of Time to RESPOND TO PLAINTIFF'S COMPLAINT;and it is,FURTHER ORDERED that the time by which Defendant may respond to the Complaint be and is hereby enlarged up to and including January 23, 2012. Signed by Judge Robert L. Wilkins on 11/28/2011. (tcb) (Entered: 11/28/2011)
2011-12-05	6	Memorandum in opposition to re 4 MOTION for Extension of Time to RESPOND TO PLAINTIFF'S COMPLAINT filed by ROSEMARY MCBRIDE HAINEY. (rdj) (Entered: 12/05/2011)
2012-01-23	7	Second MOTION for Extension of Time to File Answer by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Butler, Damarr) (Entered: 01/23/2012)
2012-01-25	8	ORDER granting 7 Second MOTION for Extension of Time to File Answer;and it is FURTHER ORDERED that the time by which Defendant may respond to the Complaint be and is hereby enlarged up to and including March 8, 2012. Signed by Judge Robert L. Wilkins on 1/25/2012. (tcb) (Entered: 01/25/2012)
2012-03-08		NOTICE: The Court's order has been mailed by first class mail to Plaintiff ROSEMARY MCBRIDE HAINEY,301 G Street, SW,Apartment 819 Washington, DC 20024 on 3/8/2012. (tcb) (Entered: 03/08/2012)
2012-03-08	9	Third MOTION for Extension of Time to File Answer by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Butler, Damarr) (Entered: 03/08/2012)
2012-03-09	10	ORDER granting 9 Third MOTION for Extension of Time to File Answer; and it is,FURTHER ORDERED that the time by which Defendant may respond to the Complaint be and is hereby enlarged up to and including April 9, 2012. Signed by Judge Robert L. Wilkins on 3/9/2012. (tcb) (Entered: 03/09/2012)
2012-03-09		NOTICE: The Court's order dated 3/9/2012 has been mailed by first class mail to Plaintiff: ROSEMARY MCBRIDE HAINEY,301 G Street, SW,Apartment 819 Washington, DC 20024 on March 9, 2012. (tcb) (Entered: 03/09/2012)
2012-04-06	11	MOTION for Extension of Time to File Answer re 1 Complaint by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Butler, Damarr) Modified on 4/9/2012 to add linkage (rdj). (Entered: 04/06/2012)
2012-04-06	12	MOTION for Summary Judgment by ROSEMARY MCBRIDE HAINEY (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(rdj) (Entered: 04/09/2012)
2012-04-09	13	NOTICE OF SUBSTITUTION OF COUNSEL by Venetia D. Bell on behalf of U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Substituting for attorney Damarr M. Butler (Bell, Venetia) (Entered: 04/09/2012)
2012-04-11		MINUTE ORDER: It is hereby ORDERED that Defendants Motion for Enlargement of Time to Responde to Plaintiffs Complaint [DKT# 11] is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part. Defendant shall have until April 25, 2012 to answer or respond to the Complaint. Signed by Judge Robert L. Wilkins on 4/11/2012. (tcb) (Entered: 04/11/2012)
2012-04-11		NOTICE: The Court's Minute Order dated 4/11/2012 has been mailed by first class mail to Plaintiff: ROSEMARY MCBRIDE HAINEY,301 G Street, SW,Apartment 819,Washington, DC 20024 on 4/11/2012 (tcb) (Entered: 04/11/2012)
2012-04-25	14	Cross MOTION for Summary Judgment and Opposition to Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR (Attachments: # 1 Declaration, # 2 Text of Proposed Order)(Bell, Venetia) (Entered: 04/25/2012)
2012-04-25	15	Memorandum in opposition to re 12 MOTION for Summary Judgment filed by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR. (See Docket Entry 14 to view document. Counsel is instructed to docket the opposition as a separate docket entry in the future)(rdj) (Entered: 04/26/2012)
2012-04-27	16	NOTICE of Amended Certificate of Service by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR re 14 Cross MOTION for Summary Judgment and Opposition to Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment (Bell, Venetia) (Entered: 04/27/2012)
2012-05-11	17	Memorandum in opposition to re 14 Cross MOTION for Summary Judgment and Opposition to Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment filed by ROSEMARY MCBRIDE HAINEY. (rdj) (Entered: 05/14/2012)
2012-05-11	18	REPLY to opposition to motion re 12 MOTION for Summary Judgment filed by ROSEMARY MCBRIDE HAINEY. (See Docket Entry 17 to view document)(rdj) (Entered: 05/14/2012)
2012-05-18	19	REPLY to opposition to motion re 14 Cross MOTION for Summary Judgment and Opposition to Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment filed by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR. (Attachments: # 1 Declaration)(Bell, Venetia) (Entered: 05/18/2012)
2012-10-10	20	NOTICE OF SUBSTITUTION OF COUNSEL by Theresa Ekeoma Dike on behalf of All Defendants Substituting for attorney Venetia D. Bell (Dike, Theresa) (Entered: 10/10/2012)
2013-02-25	21	MEMORANDUM OPINION re: Plaintiff's 12 Motion for Summary Judgment, and Defendant's 14 Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment. Signed by Judge Robert L. Wilkins on 2/25/2013. (lcrlw3) (Entered: 02/25/2013)
2013-02-25	22	ORDER re: Plaintiff's 12 Motion for Summary Judgment, and Defendant's 14 Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment. Upon consideration of Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment (Dkt. No. 12), Defendant's Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment (Dkt. No. 14), the parties' respective opposition and reply briefing thereto, the entire record in this matter, and for the reasons set forth in the accompanying Memorandum Opinion, it is hereby ORDERED that Plaintiff's Motion is hereby DENIED; it is FURTHER ORDERED that Defendant's Motion is hereby GRANTED; and it is FURTHER ORDERED that this entire action is hereby DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE. This is a final appealable order. Signed by Judge Robert L. Wilkins on 2/25/2013. (lcrlw3) (Entered: 02/25/2013)
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