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Case TitleUnited States Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation v. United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration et al
DistrictEastern District of New York
CityCentral Islip
Case Number2:2014cv05332
Date Filed2014-09-12
Date Closed2016-06-07
JudgeJudge LaShann DeArcy Hall
PlaintiffUnited States Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation
Case DescriptionBecause of various adverse actions the Department of Transportation's Maritime Administration had allegedly taken against the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation, the Association submitted 11 FOIA requests to the agency for a variety of records. Although the Association made an advance payment of $11,000 for processing its requests, the Association and the agency got into a dispute over processing its requests, including the agency's repeated attempts to try to get the Association to withdraw its requests. The Association finally filed suit.
Complaint issues: Withholding not related to exemption claims, Litigation - Attorney's fees, Litigation - Sanctions - Referral to Special Counsel, Fees - Advance Payment

DefendantUnited States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration
DefendantUnited States Department of Transportation
Documents
Docket
Complaint
Complaint attachment 1
Complaint attachment 2
User-contributed Documents
 
Docket Events (Hide)
Date FiledDoc #Docket Text

2014-09-121COMPLAINT against United States Department of Transportation, United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration filing fee $ 400, receipt number 0207-7192648 Was the Disclosure Statement on Civil Cover Sheet completed -Yes,, filed by United States Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation. (Attachments: # 1 Civil Cover Sheet, # 2 Proposed Summons) (Safran, Victoria) (Entered: 09/12/2014)
2014-09-15This attorney case opening filing has been checked for quality control. The following corrections were made: arbitration code changed to blank. (McMorrow, Karen) (Entered: 09/15/2014)
2014-09-15Case assigned to Judge Arthur D. Spatt and Magistrate Judge Gary R. Brown. (McMorrow, Karen) (Entered: 09/15/2014)
2014-09-152In accordance with Rule 73 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Local Rule 73.1, the parties are notified that if all parties consent a United States magistrate judge of this court is available to conduct all proceedings in this civil action including a (jury or nonjury) trial and to order the entry of a final judgment. Attached to the Notice is a blank copy of the consent form that should be filled out, signed and filed electronically only if all parties wish to consent. The form may also be accessed at the following link: http://www.uscourts.gov/uscourts/FormsAndFees/Forms/AO085.pdf . You may withhold your consent without adverse substantive consequences . Do NOT return or file the consent unless all parties have signed the consent. (McMorrow, Karen) (Entered: 09/15/2014)
2014-09-153SUMMONS ISSUED as to United States Department of Transportation, United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration. (Coleman, Laurie) (Entered: 09/15/2014)
2014-10-154SUMMONS Returned Executed by United States Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation. All Defendants. (Safran, Victoria) (Entered: 10/15/2014)
2014-10-175STIPULATION and Order (Proposed) extending Defendants time to respond to Plaintiff's complaint until December 3, 2014 by United States Department of Transportation, United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration (Knapp, James) (Entered: 10/17/2014)
2014-10-176NOTICE of Appearance by James Halleron Knapp on behalf of United States Department of Transportation, United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration (aty to be noticed) (Knapp, James) (Entered: 10/17/2014)
2014-10-227ORDER TO ANSWER United States Department of Transportation answer due 12/3/2014; United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration answer due 12/3/2014.. Ordered by Judge Arthur D. Spatt on 10/22/2014. (Bollbach, Jean) (Entered: 10/23/2014)
2014-12-028STIPULATION and Order (Proposed) extending Defendants time to respond to Plaintiff's complaint until December 10, 2014 by United States Department of Transportation, United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration (Knapp, James) (Entered: 12/02/2014)
2014-12-039ORDER granting 8 Stipulation extending the Defendants time to answer or otherwise move to 12/10/14. So Ordered by Judge Arthur D. Spatt on 12/3/14. Movant to serve parties by fax. (Coleman, Laurie) (Entered: 12/04/2014)
2014-12-1010Letter to the Honorable Arthur D. Spatt, United States District Judge, respectfully requesting an extension of time to respond to the complaint by United States Department of Transportation, United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration (Knapp, James) (Entered: 12/10/2014)
2014-12-1111ORDER Re: Defendants 10 Letter requesting an extension of time through 2/6/15 to respond to the complaint. Defendants request is granted to the extent they are given until 1/10/15 to answer or otherwise respond to the complaint. United States Department of Transportation and United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration answers due 1/10/2015. Ordered by Judge Arthur D. Spatt on 12/11/14. (Coleman, Laurie) (Entered: 12/11/2014)
2014-12-1112Letter by United States Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation (Safran, Victoria) (Entered: 12/11/2014)
2015-01-05NOTICE - Please be advised that Judge Spatt's Individual Rules Effective January 1, 2015 have been uploaded to the Eastern District of New York website. Please note the changes to previous rules, including those regarding courtesy copies under Rule I(A). (Coleman, Laurie) (Entered: 01/05/2015)
2015-01-1213ANSWER to 1 Complaint, by All Defendants. (Knapp, James) (Entered: 01/12/2015)
2015-01-1314ORDER: An initial conference is scheduled on 2/9/2015. See order and attachment. Ordered by Magistrate Judge Gary R. Brown on 1/13/2015. (Attachments: # 1 GRB Individual Rules) (Posillico, Lauren) (Entered: 01/13/2015)
2015-01-2715NOTICE of Change of Plaintiff's Attorney Address by Victoria L. Safran (Safran, Victoria) (Entered: 01/27/2015)
2015-02-0916Minute Entry for proceedings held before Magistrate Judge Gary R. Brown:Initial Conference Hearing held on 2/9/2015. Defendant has until 5/29/15 to produce remaining FOIA documents, including a Vaughn Index. A historical Vaughn Index will be produced at a later date. Plaintiff to submit a status report by 6/15/15. (Tape #10:34-10:59; 11:41-11:59.) (McMorrow, Karen) (Entered: 02/10/2015)
2015-02-1717Letter MOTION for Reconsideration re 16 Initial Conference Hearing, Set Deadlines,, to Honorable Magistrate Judge Gary R. Brown by United States Department of Transportation, United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration. (Knapp, James) (Entered: 02/17/2015)
2015-02-2418RESPONSE in Opposition re 17 Letter MOTION for Reconsideration re 16 Initial Conference Hearing, Set Deadlines,, to Honorable Magistrate Judge Gary R. Brown filed by United States Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A. Letter from Victoria L. Safran to James H. Knapp dated Feb. 6, 2015, # 2 Exhibit B. Letter from Victoria L. Safran to James H. Knapp dated Dec. 23, 2014, # 3 Exhibit C. FOIA Documents produced by Defendants) (Safran, Victoria) (Entered: 02/24/2015)
2015-03-04ELECTRONIC ORDER denying 17 Motion for Reconsideration. Courts have wide discretion to require Vaughn indices to the produced well before summary judgment stage to streamline the litigation process. See ACLU v. Dep't of Defense , 339 F. Supp. 2d 201, 205 (S.D.N.Y. 2004) (requiring federal agencies to produce Vaughn indices on a rolling basis); see also Judicial Watch, Inc. v. Dep't of Energy , 191 F. Supp. 2d 138, 141 (D.D.C. 2002); Natural Resources Defense Council v. Dep't of Energy , 191 F. Supp. 2d 41, 43-44 (D.D.C. 2002). Vaughn indices typically include a factual description of each document, claimed exemption, title or category of documents, date, author and recipient. See 15 Fed. Proc. L. Ed. § 38:385 (collecting Court of Appeals cases). Holding that the Government must produce a Vaughn index contemporaneous with its response to outstanding FOIA requests placed a minimal burden on the Government, since the Government must review these documents and make a determination as to whether they should be produced in any event. As such, the Government's motion for reconsideration is DENIED. Ordered by Magistrate Judge Gary R. Brown on 3/4/2015. (Yim, Kevin) (Entered: 03/04/2015)
2015-03-18Case Reassigned to Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields. Magistrate Judge Gary R. Brown no longer assigned to the case. (Mahoney, Brenna) (Entered: 03/18/2015)
2015-04-2719ORDER IN RE CASES RE-ASSIGNED. Ordered by Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields on 4/27/2015. (Attachments: # 1 AYS Rules) (Torres, Jasmine) (Entered: 05/01/2015)
2015-06-1520MOTION to Produce Vaughn Index/Schedule Conference by United States Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation. (Safran, Victoria) (Entered: 06/15/2015)
2015-06-1921RESPONSE to Motion re 20 MOTION to Produce Vaughn Index/Schedule Conference in partial opposition filed by All Defendants. (Knapp, James) (Entered: 06/19/2015)
2015-06-22Electronic ORDER granting 20 in part and denying in part. The request for a status conference is GRANTED. The status conference is set for July 16, 2015 at 10:30am in courtroom 830. The request that the Defendants be given a six week deadline to produce the historical Vaughn Index is DENIED at this time. The parties are directed to confer with each other regarding a date that is acceptable to both sides and, if the parties cannot agree on a date, the Court will address the issue at the July 16, 2015 status conference. So Ordered by Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields on 6/22/2015. (Casalini, Rosalinde) (Entered: 06/22/2015)
2015-07-0122Letter to the Honorable Anne Y. Shields, United States Magistrate Judge, respectfully submitted to advise that the parties have agreed that Defendants will provide a historical Vaughn index by August 20, 2015 by United States Department of Transportation, United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration (Knapp, James) (Entered: 07/01/2015)
2015-07-1623Minute Order for proceedings held before Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields:Status Conference held on 7/16/2015. A further status Conference is set for 9/29/2015 at 11:00 AM in Courtroom 830 before Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields. So Ordered by Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields. (Tape #11:07-11:10.) (Torres, Jasmine) (Entered: 07/16/2015)
2015-09-2524MOTION to Adjourn Conference by United States Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation. (Safran, Victoria) (Entered: 09/25/2015)
2015-09-26ORDER granting 24 Motion to Adjourn Conference. The status conference in this matter is hereby re-scheduled, upon request and consent of the parties, to October 28, 2015 at 10:00 A.M. So Ordered by Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields on 9/26/2015. (Shields, Anne) (Entered: 09/26/2015)
2015-10-2825Minute Order for proceedings held before Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields:Status Conference held on 10/28/2015. See Minute Order for details. So Ordered by Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields. (Tape #10:06-10:09.) (Torres, Jasmine) (Entered: 10/28/2015)
2015-12-1626Joint MOTION for Extension of Time to File Motion Briefing Schedule by United States Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation. (Safran, Victoria) (Entered: 12/16/2015)
2015-12-17Electronic ORDER granting 26 Motion for Extension of Time to File. The parties' joint request to extend the time to identify issues that remain to be decided via motion practice and to set forth a proposed briefing schedule for any such motion, as directed in the Minute Order dated 10/28/15, is extended until February 16, 2016. So Ordered by Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields on 12/17/2015. (Casalini, Rosalinde) Modified on 12/17/2015 (McMorrow, Karen). (Entered: 12/17/2015)
2016-01-15Case Reassigned to Judge LaShann DeArcy Hall. Judge Arthur D. Spatt no longer assigned to the case.Please download and review the Individual Practices of the assigned Judges, located on our website . Attorneys are responsible for providing courtesy copies to judges where their Individual Practices require such. (Mahoney, Brenna) (Entered: 01/15/2016)
2016-02-1227Letter MOTION for Extension of Time to File to submit a status report by United States Department of Transportation, United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration. (Knapp, James) (Entered: 02/12/2016)
2016-02-13ORDER granting 27 Motion for Extension of Time to File. So Ordered by Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields on 2/13/2016. (Shields, Anne) (Entered: 02/13/2016)
2016-02-1728Letter MOTION for Extension of Time to File status report and to propose briefing schedule by United States Department of Transportation, United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration. (Knapp, James) (Entered: 02/17/2016)
2016-02-18Electronic ORDER granting 28 Motion for Extension of Time to File. The Court grants the request for an additional 45-day extension of time, until April 1, 2016, for parties to submit a joint status report, which shall state the statusof document review, an identification of those issues to be decided via motion practice, and a proposed briefing schedule for any such motion. So Ordered by Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields on 2/18/2016. (Casalini, Rosalinde) (Entered: 02/18/2016)
2016-04-0129STATUS REPORT and request for conference respectfully submitted on behalf of the parties by United States Department of Transportation, United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration (Knapp, James) (Entered: 04/01/2016)
2016-04-03Status Conference set for 5/4/2016 10:30 AM in U. S. District Court, EDNY, Long Island Courthouse, 100 Federal Plaza, Central Islip, NY 11722-4438 before Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields. On April 28, 2016, counsel are to submit letters, filed ECF, setting forth their positions as to how to proceed in this matter. So Ordered by Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields on 4/3/2016. (Shields, Anne) (Entered: 04/03/2016)
2016-04-0430Letter by United States Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit, # 2 Exhibit) (Safran, Victoria) (Entered: 04/04/2016)
2016-04-2631Joint MOTION to Adjourn Conference by United States Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation. (Safran, Victoria) (Entered: 04/26/2016)
2016-04-27Electronic ORDER granting 31 Motion to Adjourn Conference. As Counsel have indicated that they have commenced settlement negotiations, the Court extends the time to submit a joint status report until 6/1/16. The status letter shall indicate where the parties are in settlement negotiations, and if they believe a settlement conference would be fruitful. If the parties have not reached a settlement by that time, the letter shall set forth Counsels' positions as to how to proceed in this matter. Additionally, the status conference scheduled for May 4, 16 has been adjourned to 6/8/16 at 11:30am. So Ordered by Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields on 4/27/2016. (Casalini, Rosalinde) (Entered: 04/27/2016)
2016-06-0132Joint MOTION to Adjourn Conference by United States Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association and Foundation. (Safran, Victoria) (Entered: 06/01/2016)
2016-06-02Electronic ORDER granting 32 Motion to Adjourn Conference. As Counsel have indicated that they are continuing settlement negotiations, the Court extends the time to submit a joint status letter until 6/9/16. If the parties have not reached a settlement by that time, the letter shall set forth Counsels' positions as to how they wish to proceed in this matter. Additionally, the status conference scheduled for 6/8/16 has been adjourned to 6/14/16 at 10:30am. In the event that the matter has settled before 6/14/16, parties may make a motion to cancel the status conference. So Ordered by Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields on 6/2/2016. (Casalini, Rosalinde) (Entered: 06/02/2016)
2016-06-0333STIPULATION of Dismissal with prejudice by United States Department of Transportation, United States Department of Transportation Maritime Administration (Knapp, James) (Entered: 06/03/2016)
2016-06-0734STIPULATION AND ORDER DISMISSING CASE: IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED AND AGREED, pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 4l(a)(l)(A)(ii), by and between the parties hereto, by and through their respective undersigned attorneys, that this action be dismissed on the merits with prejudice and without costs, attorneys' fees, expenses or disbursements to any party. Furthermore, by this Stipulation and Order, Defendants, agree to waive any claims previously asserted for additional fees associated with Plaintiffs Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests that are the subject of this action. Ordered by Judge LaShann DeArcy Hall on June 6, 2016. (Basnight, Jasmine) (Entered: 06/07/2016)
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