| Date Filed | Doc # | Docket Text |
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| 2022-06-30 | 1 | COMPLAINT against U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR ( Filing fee $ 402 receipt number ADCDC-9343703) filed by AMERICA FIRST LEGAL FOUNDATION. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A: Labor Request, # 2 Exhibit B: Acknowledgment, # 3 Exhibit C: Interim Response, # 4 Exhibit D:Status Update, # 5 Exhibit E: Office of Solicitor Email, # 6 Civil Cover Sheet, # 7 Summons)(Field, Brian) (Entered: 06/30/2022) |
| 2022-07-01 | 2 | LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by AMERICA FIRST LEGAL FOUNDATION (Field, Brian) (Entered: 07/01/2022) |
| 2022-07-05 | | Case Assigned to Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly. (zmh) (Entered: 07/05/2022) |
| 2022-07-05 | 3 | SUMMONS (3) Issued Electronically as to U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, U.S. Attorney and U.S. Attorney General (Attachment: # 1 Notice and Consent)(zmh) (Entered: 07/05/2022) |
| 2022-07-18 | 4 | ORDER ESTABLISHING PROCEDURES FOR CASES ASSIGNED TO JUDGE COLLEEN KOLLAR-KOTELLY. Signed by Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly on 7/18/2022. (DM) (Entered: 07/18/2022) |
| 2022-07-26 | 5 | RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed as to the United States Attorney. Date of Service Upon United States Attorney on 7/5/2022. Answer due for ALL FEDERAL DEFENDANTS by 8/4/2022. (Attachments: # 1 Declaration of K. Robinson with Exhibits)(Field, Brian) (Entered: 07/26/2022) |
| 2022-07-26 | 6 | RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR served on 7/13/2022 (Attachments: # 1 Declaration of K. Robinson with Exhibits)(Field, Brian) (Entered: 07/26/2022) |
| 2022-07-26 | 7 | RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed on United States Attorney General. Date of Service Upon United States Attorney General 07/14/2022. (Attachments: # 1 Declaration of K. Robinson with Exhibits)(Field, Brian) (Entered: 07/26/2022) |
| 2022-08-04 | 8 | NOTICE of Appearance by Hannah Solomon-Strauss on behalf of U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR (Solomon-Strauss, Hannah) (Entered: 08/04/2022) |
| 2022-08-04 | 9 | NOTICE of Appearance by Giselle Barcia on behalf of U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR (Barcia, Giselle) (Entered: 08/04/2022) |
| 2022-08-04 | 10 | ANSWER to Complaint by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR.(Solomon-Strauss, Hannah) (Entered: 08/04/2022) |
| 2022-08-04 | | NOTICE OF ERROR re 10 Answer to Complaint; emailed to hannah.m.solomon-strauss@usdoj.gov, cc'd 5 associated attorneys -- The PDF file you docketed contained errors: 1. Please note the following for future filings; do not refile document , 2. DO NOT REFILE. Counsel is reminded that log in and password should match signature page. (zjm, ) (Entered: 08/04/2022) |
| 2022-08-09 | 11 | ORDER directing the parties to meet and confer and file a joint status report by SEPTEMBER 23, 2022. Signed by Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly on 8/9/22. (lcckk3) (Entered: 08/09/2022) |
| 2022-08-09 | | Set/Reset Deadlines: Meet & Confer Statement due by 9/23/2022. (dot) (Entered: 08/09/2022) |
| 2022-08-25 | 12 | NOTICE OF RELATED CASE by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR. Case related to (Barcia, Giselle) (Main Document 12 replaced on 8/26/2022 due to being fillable) (zjm). (Entered: 08/25/2022) |
| 2022-09-02 | | MINUTE ORDER. Plaintiff has filed eleven FOIA cases in this court against eleven different federal government agencies, seeking from each records sufficient to identify 1) all employees who entered a position in the agency as a political appointee since January 20, 2021 or 2) all career employees who were detailed to a position eligible to be filled by a political appointee or to a new position through coordination or consultation with either the White House Liaison or Presidential Personnel Office since January 20, 2021. See Am. First Legal Found. v. U.S. Dep't of Commerce, 1:22-cv-01884-ABJ; Am. First Legal Found. v. U.S. Dep't of Energy, 1:22-cv-01888-RDM; Am. First Legal Found. v. U.S. Dep't of Health & Human Services, 1:22-cv-01895-TSC; Am. First Legal Found. v. U.S. Dep't of Homeland Security, 1:22-cv-01896-CJN; Am. First Legal Found. v. U.S. Dep't of State, 1:22-cv-01897-CJN; Am. First Legal Found. v. U.S. Dep't of Transportation, 1:22-cv-01898-ABJ; Am. First Legal Found. v. U.S. Dep't of Treasury, 1:22-cv-01899-TSC; Am. First Legal Found. v. U.S. Dep't of Veterans Affairs, 1:22-cv-01900-ABJ; Am. First Legal Found. v. U.S. Dep't of Education, 1:22-cv-01901-DLF; Am. First Legal Found. v. U.S. Dep't of the Interior, 1:22-cv-01903-BAH; Am. First Legal Found. v. U.S. Dep't of Labor, 1:22-cv-01905-CKK. Plaintiff has filed a notice of related case in each case, asserting that all of the cases are related under Local Civil Rule 40.5. Plaintiff maintains that they raise common issues of fact and law because they involve identical FOIA requests, and will, plaintiff predicts, result in similar document productions and involve similar FOIA exemptions. If the cases were related, Rule 40.5(c)(1) would direct that they be reassigned to the judge with the oldest pending case, which is America First Legal Foundation v. U.S. Department of Commerce, 1:22-cv-01884-ABJ. Upon review of plaintiff's notice of related case, though, the Court concludes that the eleven cases are not related under Local Rule 40.5. While the requests themselves called for the same types of records, that does not mean that litigation involving the agencies' responses will present common issues to be resolved. Summary judgment motions often test the adequacy of the search, and here, the requests were transmitted to eleven different agencies, with their own hiring processes, record keeping systems, and custodians. Each agency's effort to identify and produce documents responsive to plaintiff's request will involve searching the files of different custodians in different locations and on different systems, using terms appropriate to the agency, and the questions presented when each agency announces that the search has been completed will be different. Even the early stages of the litigation, when production schedules are established, will vary from agency to agency depending upon the volume of responsive material and the agency's FOIA resources. Moreover, the legitimacy of any claimed exemptions, another issue that can be litigated on summary judgment, may vary depending upon the mission of the agency, including whether it has a law enforcement function and the volume of classified material essential to its work. In sum, despite the similarity of the requests, it is not apparent now that the facts and law to be considered in determining whether each agency has complied with FOIA will be the same, and the cases will not be reassigned pursuant to Local Rule 40.5. This order does not rule out the possibility that cases could be consolidated in the future for the consideration of a common question of law. SO ORDERED. Signed by Judge Amy Berman Jackson on 09/02/2022. (DMK) (Entered: 09/02/2022) |
| 2022-09-23 | 13 | Joint STATUS REPORT by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR. (Solomon-Strauss, Hannah) (Entered: 09/23/2022) |
| 2022-09-23 | | MINUTE ORDER. The Court is in receipt of the parties' 13 Joint Status Report. Defendant indicates that it made interim productions of records responsive to Plaintiff's FOIA request on November 10, 2021 and September 2, 2022 and that it anticipates making a further interim production by October 31, 2022, and a "full production" by November 30, 2022. The parties propose submitting a further joint status report (including a proposed motion briefing schedule) after Defendant completes its productions to Plaintiff and the parties have an opportunity to confer about the possibility of resolving any remaining disputes. As proposed by the parties, the Court ORDERS the parties to file a Joint Status Report by no later than DECEMBER 7, 2022 addressing the status of Defendant's response to Plaintiff's FOIA request and a proposed schedule for proceeding with the case. Signed by Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly on 9/23/22. (lcckk3) (Entered: 09/23/2022) |
| 2022-09-23 | | Set/Reset Deadlines: Joint Status Report due by 12/7/2022, addressing the status of Defendant's response to Plaintiff's FOIA request and a proposed schedule for proceeding with the case. (dot) (Entered: 09/30/2022) |
| 2022-12-07 | 14 | Joint STATUS REPORT by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR. (Solomon-Strauss, Hannah) (Entered: 12/07/2022) |
| 2022-12-08 | | MINUTE ORDER. The Court is in receipt of the 14 Joint Status Report, in which Defendant Department of Labor indicates it made its final production to Plaintiff. Plaintiff then sent Defendant a "list of records that paper to be missing from [Defendant]'s production," and Defendant agreed to review the list and "determine if there are any additional records to be released." Per the parties' request, the Court ORDERS the parties to file a Joint Status Report by JANUARY 20, 2023 advising the court of any outstanding issues with production and, if appropriate, indicate that they are interested in setting a briefing schedule, at which point the Court will provide a template. Signed by Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly on 12/8/22. (lcckk3) (Entered: 12/08/2022) |
| 2022-12-08 | | Set/Reset Deadlines: Joint Status Report due by 1/20/2023, advising the court of any outstanding issues with production and, if appropriate, indicate that they are interested in setting a briefing schedule, at which point the Court will provide a template. (dot) (Entered: 12/12/2022) |
| 2023-01-18 | 15 | Joint STATUS REPORT by AMERICA FIRST LEGAL FOUNDATION. (Field, Brian) (Entered: 01/18/2023) |
| 2023-01-19 | | MINUTE ORDER. The Court is in receipt of the 15 Joint Status Report. The parties explain that Plaintiff sent Defendant a letter indicating that some records appeared to be missing from what Defendant considered to be its final production; Defendant informed Plaintiff that it would be making a supplemental production of certain records Plaintiff identified, though it will not be producing all of them, and it is in the process of finalizing that supplemental production now. Plaintiff is now considering whether further proceedings are necessary, and accordingly the parties propose filing another joint status report updating the Court on the status of these issues. Per the parties' request, the Court ORDERS the parties to file a Joint Status Report by FEBRUARY 22, 2023 advising the court of any outstanding issues with production and, if appropriate, indicate that they are interested in setting a briefing schedule, at which point the Court will provide a template. Signed by Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly on 1/19/23. (lcckk3) (Entered: 01/19/2023) |
| 2023-01-19 | | Set/Reset Deadlines: Joint Status Report due by 2/22/2023, advising the court of any outstanding issues with production and, if appropriate, indicate that they are interested in setting a briefing schedule, at which point the Court will provide a template. (dot) (Entered: 01/20/2023) |
| 2023-02-22 | 16 | Joint STATUS REPORT by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR. (Solomon-Strauss, Hannah) (Entered: 02/22/2023) |
| 2023-02-22 | | MINUTE ORDER. The Court is in receipt of the 16 Joint Status Report. The parties explain that Plaintiff has completed its review of Defendant's productions and does not believe that dispositive motions practice is necessary; rather, Plaintiff believes that the only issue remaining is its demand for attorneys' fees, which the parties are conferring to resolve. Per the parties' request, the Court ORDERS the parties to file a Joint Status Report by MARCH 31, 2023 updating the Court of the status of these negotiations. Signed by Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly on 2/22/23. (lcckk3) (Entered: 02/22/2023) |
| 2023-02-22 | | Set/Reset Deadlines: Joint Status Report due by 3/31/2022, updating the Court of the status of these negotiations. (dot) (Entered: 02/22/2023) |
| 2023-03-30 | 17 | Joint STATUS REPORT by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR. (Solomon-Strauss, Hannah) (Entered: 03/30/2023) |
| 2023-03-30 | | MINUTE ORDER. The Court is in receipt of the 17 Joint Status Report. The parties indicate that since the last 16 Joint Status Report, they reached an agreement on fees and costs - which was the only issue remaining - and will exchange paperwork shortly. Per the parties' suggestion, the Court ORDERS the parties to file a notice of dismissal, or an update as to the settlement status in the form of a joint status report, by no later than MAY 31, 2023. Signed by Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly on 3/30/23. (lcckk3) (Entered: 03/30/2023) |
| 2023-03-30 | | Set/Reset Deadlines: Joint Status Report due by 5/31/2023. (dot) (Entered: 04/05/2023) |
| 2023-05-08 | 18 | STIPULATION of Dismissal by AMERICA FIRST LEGAL FOUNDATION. (Field, Brian) (Entered: 05/08/2023) |
| 2023-05-09 | 19 | ORDER dismissing case with prejudice. Signed by Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly on 5/9/23. (lcckk3) (Entered: 05/09/2023) |
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