Case Detail

FOIA Project Annotation: Judge John Bates has ruled that Adam Wetzel does not have standing to bring a FOIA suit against the Department of Veterans Affairs because two duplicative FOIA requests by his attorneys failed to indicate that they were requesting information about litigation concerning his VA loan on his behalf. Attorney Charles Daugherty requested legal documents about Wetzel's VA-funded purchase of a condominium, but nowhere indicated that he was making the request on Wetzel's behalf. Another attorney in the firm, Jimmy Ray Howell, made an identical request, and, while the request referenced Wetzel's litigation, it also failed to specify that it was made on Wetzel's behalf. When Wetzel brought suit under FOIA, the agency argued he did not have standing. Bates first observed that "if a party has not made a request within the meaning of FOIA, then he does not have standing to bring a lawsuit. Consistent with this principle, courts routinely dismiss FOIA cases for lack of standing by a plaintiff where plaintiff's counsel submitted a request without including the plaintiff's name or clearly indicating that the request was filed on the plaintiff's behalf." Bates then noted that "Wetzel's signature does not appear on either Daugherty or Howell's request. And neither request states that it was filed on Wetzel's behalf. True, his name is mentioned in the requests, and there is some indication of a representational relationship between the requestors and Wetzel. But that is not enough." Bates pointed out that "the relevant documents submitted by Daugherty and Howell cannot reasonably be construed as requests by Wetzel. At most, the requests indicate that Wetzel, too, has an interest in the information. But many people might have some interest in the information requested through FOIA. Such an interest, alone, is insufficient to create standing." Bates admitted that "the distinction between a request clearly made on a plaintiff's behalf and one not sufficiently clear might, at the margins, appear thin." But he observed that "a line must be drawn to assure that the 'request' requirement does not devolve into a general interest inquiry. Moreover, dismissals on this basis are entirely preventable. All that this suit required was for Wetzel's attorneys to list Wetzel's name as that of the 'requestor,' or to clearly state in the body of the request that it was made on Wetzel's behalf."
Issues: Litigation - Jurisdiction - Proper Party

Date Filed	Doc #	Docket Text
2012-08-14	1	COMPLAINT against US DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS ( Filing fee $ 350 receipt number 0090-3036719) filed by Adam Wetzel. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A, # 2 Exhibit B, # 3 Exhibit C, # 4 Exhibit D, # 5 Exhibit E, # 6 Exhibit F, # 7 Exhibit G, # 8 Exhibit H, # 9 Exhibit I, # 10 Civil Cover Sheet, # 11 Summons)(Howell, Jimmy) (Entered: 08/14/2012)
2012-08-14		Case Assigned to Judge John D. Bates. (mmh) (Entered: 08/15/2012)
2012-08-28	2	ELECTRONIC SUMMONS (1) Issued as to U.S. Attorney. (Attachments: # 1 Consent Form, # 2 Notice of Consent)(kb) (Entered: 08/28/2012)
2012-09-24	3	ENTERED IN ERROR.....AFFIDAVIT of Service by ADAM WETZEL. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A)(Howell, Jimmy) Modified on 9/25/2012 (dr). (Entered: 09/24/2012)
2012-09-25		NOTICE OF CORRECTED DOCKET ENTRY: re 3 Affidavit was entered in error and counsel is instructed to refile pleading using the appropriate events for each party served. (dr) (Entered: 09/25/2012)
2012-10-09	4	NOTICE of Appearance by Mercedeh Momeni on behalf of US DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS (Momeni, Mercedeh) (Entered: 10/09/2012)
2012-10-09	5	Consent MOTION for Extension of Time to File Answer re 1 Complaint, by US DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS (Momeni, Mercedeh) (Entered: 10/09/2012)
2012-10-11		MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of 5 defendant's consent motion for extension of time, and the entire record herein, it is hereby ORDERED that defendant's motion is GRANTED; and it is further ORDERED that defendant shall file its response to plaintiff's complaint by not later than November 14, 2012. SO ORDERED. Signed by Judge John D. Bates on 10/11/2012. (lcjdb1) (Entered: 10/11/2012)
2012-10-12		Set/Reset Deadlines: Defendant shall file its response to plaintiff's complaint by 11/14/2012. (jth) (Entered: 10/12/2012)
2012-10-19	6	NOTICE OF SUBSTITUTION OF COUNSEL by Mary Elizabeth Stratton on behalf of US DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS Substituting for attorney Mercedeh Momeni (Stratton, Mary) (Entered: 10/19/2012)
2012-11-08	7	Consent MOTION for Extension of Time to File Answer and Proposed Summary Judgment Briefing Schedule by US DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS (Stratton, Mary) (Entered: 11/08/2012)
2012-11-08		MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of 7 defendant's consent Motion for Extension of Time and Proposed Summary Judgment Briefing Schedule, and the entire record herein, it is hereby ORDERED that defendant's motion is GRANTED; it is further ORDERED that defendant shall respond to plaintiff's complaint by not later than December 14, 2012; and it is further ORDERED as follows: defendant shall file its motion for summary judgment by not later than December 14, 2012; plaintiff shall file his opposition to defendant's motion by not later than January 15, 2013; and defendant shall file its reply by not later than January 29, 2013. SO ORDERED. Signed by Judge John D. Bates on 11/08/2012. (lcjdb1) (Entered: 11/08/2012)
2012-11-09		Set/Reset Deadlines: Answer due by 12/14/2012. Summary Judgment motions due by 12/14/2012. Response to Motion for Summary Judgment due by 1/15/2013. Reply to Motion for Summary Judgment due by 1/29/2013. (tb, ) (Entered: 11/09/2012)
2012-12-12	8	MOTION to Dismiss for Lack of Jurisdiction by US DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS (Attachments: # 1 Memorandum in Support, # 2 Exhibit 1, # 3 Text of Proposed Order)(Stratton, Mary) (Entered: 12/12/2012)
2012-12-13	9	Memorandum in opposition to re 8 MOTION to Dismiss for Lack of Jurisdiction filed by ADAM WETZEL. (Howell, Jimmy) (Entered: 12/13/2012)
2012-12-19	10	REPLY to opposition to motion re 8 MOTION to Dismiss for Lack of Jurisdiction filed by US DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. (Stratton, Mary) (Entered: 12/19/2012)
2013-06-11	11	MEMORANDUM OPINION. Signed by Judge John D. Bates on 6/11/2013. (lcjdb2) (Entered: 06/11/2013)
2013-06-11	12	ORDER granting 8 defendant's motion to dismiss. See text of Order and accompanying Memorandum Opinion for details. Signed by Judge John D. Bates on 6/11/2013. (lcjdb2) (Entered: 06/11/2013)
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