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Case TitleCENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY v. BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT et al
DistrictDistrict of Columbia
CityWashington, DC
Case Number1:2019cv03154
Date Filed2019-10-22
Date Closed2020-11-12
JudgeJudge Randolph D. Moss
PlaintiffCENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
Case DescriptionThe Center for Biological Diversity submitted a FOIA request to the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement for records concerning wells in the Gulf of Mexico OCS Region where hydraulic fracturing had been used. CBD also requested a fee waiver. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request and denied CBD's request for a fee waiver. The agency told CBD that its request was put on the complex track for processing and that the cost of records would be approximately $8,000. CBD filed an administrative appeal of the agency's denial of its fee waiver request. The agency subsequently granted CBD's fee waiver request. After hearing nothing further from the agency, CBD filed suit.
Complaint issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy - Search, Public Interest Fee Waiver, Litigation - Attorney's fees

DefendantBUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT
DefendantU.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR
Documents
Docket
Complaint
Complaint attachment 1
Complaint attachment 2
Complaint attachment 3
Complaint attachment 4
Complaint attachment 5
User-contributed Documents
 
Docket Events (Hide)
Date FiledDoc #Docket Text

2019-10-221COMPLAINT against BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR ( Filing fee $ 400 receipt number ADCDC-6467206) filed by CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY. (Attachments: # 1 Civil Cover Sheet, # 2 Summons to the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, # 3 Summons to the U.S. Department of the Interior, # 4 Summons to the U.S. Attorney, # 5 Summons to the Attorney General)(Kilduff, Catherine) (Entered: 10/22/2019)
2019-10-222LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY (Kilduff, Catherine) (Entered: 10/22/2019)
2019-10-223MOTION for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice :Attorney Name- Cari Miyoko Sakashita, :Firm- Center for Biological Diversity, :Address- 1212 Broadway, Suite 800; Oakland, CA 94612. Phone No. - (510) 844-7108. Fax No. - (510) 844-7150 Filing fee $ 100, receipt number ADCDC-6470742. Fee Status: Fee Paid. by CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY (Attachments: # 1 Declaration of Cari Miyoko Sakashita, # 2 Text of Proposed Order)(Kilduff, Catherine) (Entered: 10/22/2019)
2019-10-23Case assigned to Judge Randolph D. Moss. (zmc) (Entered: 10/23/2019)
2019-10-244SUMMONS (4) Issued Electronically as to BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR, U.S. Attorney and U.S. Attorney General (Attachment: # 1 Notice and Consent)(zmc) (Entered: 10/24/2019)
2019-10-24MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of Plaintiff's motion for leave to appear pro hac vice, Dkt. 3 , it is hereby ORDERED that the motion is GRANTED. Cari Miyoko Sakashita is hereby granted leave to appear pro hac vice in this case. Counsel should register for e-filing via PACER and file a notice of appearance pursuant to LCvR 83.6(a). Click for instructions . Signed by Judge Randolph D. Moss on 10/24/2019. (lcrdm2, ) (Entered: 10/24/2019)
2019-10-245STANDING ORDER: The parties are hereby ORDERED to comply with the directives set forth in the attached Standing Order. See document for details. Signed by Judge Randolph D. Moss on 10/24/2019. (lcrdm2, ) (Entered: 10/24/2019)
2019-10-256NOTICE of Appearance by Cari Miyoko Sakashita on behalf of CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY (Sakashita, Cari) (Entered: 10/25/2019)
2019-11-127RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed as to the United States Attorney. Date of Service Upon United States Attorney on 11/6/2019. Answer due for ALL FEDERAL DEFENDANTS by 12/6/2019. (Sakashita, Cari) (Entered: 11/12/2019)
2019-11-128RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed on United States Attorney General. Date of Service Upon United States Attorney General November 4, 2019. (Sakashita, Cari) (Entered: 11/12/2019)
2019-11-129RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed. BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT served on 11/12/2019; U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR served on 11/4/2019 (Sakashita, Cari) (Entered: 11/12/2019)
2019-12-0510Consent MOTION for Extension of Time to File Answer re 1 Complaint, by BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR (Seabrook, April) (Entered: 12/05/2019)
2019-12-06MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of Defendant's unopposed motion for extension, Dkt. 10, it is hereby ORDERED that the motion is GRANTED. Defendant shall respond to the complaint on or before December 20, 2019. Signed by Judge Randolph D. Moss on 12/6/2019. (lcrdm2, ) (Entered: 12/06/2019)
2019-12-2011ANSWER to Complaint by BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR.(Seabrook, April) (Entered: 12/20/2019)
2019-12-27MINUTE ORDER: The parties are hereby ORDERED to appear for an Initial Scheduling Conference on January 28, 2020, at 11:30 a.m. in Courtroom 21. It is further ORDERED that the parties shall confer in advance of the Initial Scheduling Conference on (1) whether any records can be released, and (2) the proper next steps in this litigation. Signed by Judge Randolph D. Moss on 12/27/2019. (lcrdm2, ) (Entered: 12/27/2019)
2020-01-23MINUTE ORDER: The parties are hereby ORDERED to comply with the terms of the Court's revised standing order, which is available on the Court's website. Click for details. Signed by Judge Randolph D. Moss on 01/23/2020. (lcrdm2, ) (Entered: 01/23/2020)
2020-01-2412Joint STATUS REPORT by BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR. (Seabrook, April) (Entered: 01/24/2020)
2020-01-27MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' joint status report, Dkt. 12, it is hereby ORDERED that the Initial Scheduling Conference currently scheduled for January 28, 2020 is VACATED. It is further ORDERED that the parties shall file another joint status report on or before February 18, 2020, which shall update the Court regarding the status of the processing of Plaintiff's FOIA request, the production of records, any agreements or issues between the parties, and a recommendation for further proceedings. Signed by Judge Randolph D. Moss on 01/27/2020. (lcrdm2, ) (Entered: 01/27/2020)
2020-02-1813Joint STATUS REPORT by BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR. (Seabrook, April) (Entered: 02/18/2020)
2020-02-24MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' joint status report, Dkt. 13, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report on or before March 17, 2020, which shall update the Court regarding the status of the processing of Plaintiff's FOIA request, the production of records, any agreements or issues between the parties and a recommendation for further proceedings. Signed by Judge Randolph D. Moss on 02/24/2020. (lcrdm2, ) (Entered: 02/24/2020)
2020-03-1314Joint STATUS REPORT by CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY. (Kilduff, Catherine) (Entered: 03/13/2020)
2020-03-16MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' joint status report, Dkt. 14, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report on or before April 22, 2020, which shall update the Court regarding the status of the processing of Plaintiff's FOIA request, and provide a recommendation for further proceedings. Signed by Judge Randolph D. Moss on 03/16/2020. (lcrdm2, ) (Entered: 03/16/2020)
2020-03-1615NOTICE of Appearance by Marsha Wellknown Yee on behalf of BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR (Yee, Marsha) (Entered: 03/16/2020)
2020-04-2216Joint STATUS REPORT by BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR. (Yee, Marsha) (Entered: 04/22/2020)
2020-04-27MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' joint status report, Dkt. 16, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report on or before June 18, 2020, which shall update the Court regarding the status of the processing of Plaintiff's FOIA request, and provide a recommendation for further proceedings. Signed by Judge Randolph D. Moss on 04/27/2020. (lcrdm2, ) (Entered: 04/27/2020)
2020-06-1817Joint STATUS REPORT by BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR. (Yee, Marsha) (Entered: 06/18/2020)
2020-06-19MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' joint status report, Dkt. 17, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report on or before September 15, 2020, unless a stipulation of dismissal is filed on or before that date. Signed by Judge Randolph D. Moss on 06/19/2020. (lcrdm2, ) (Entered: 06/19/2020)
2020-07-2018NOTICE OF WITHDRAWAL OF APPEARANCE as to BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR. Attorney Marsha Wellknown Yee terminated. (Yee, Marsha) (Entered: 07/20/2020)
2020-09-1519Joint STATUS REPORT by BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR. (Seabrook, April) (Entered: 09/15/2020)
2020-09-16MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' joint status report, Dkt. 19 , it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report on or before November 13, 2020. Signed by Judge Randolph D. Moss on 9/16/2020. (lcrdm2) (Entered: 09/16/2020)
2020-11-1220STIPULATION of Dismissal by BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR. (Seabrook, April) (Entered: 11/12/2020)
2020-11-12MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' joint stipulation of dismissal, Dkt. 20 , it is hereby ORDERED that the case is DISMISSED with prejudice, with each party bearing its own costs and attorneys' fees. The Clerk of Court is directed to terminate this case. Signed by Judge Randolph D. Moss on 11/12/2020. (lcrdm2) (Entered: 11/12/2020)
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