CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY v. U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS et al and 7 other new FOIA lawsuits

We have added 56 documents from 8 FOIA cases filed between May 28, 2017 and June 3, 2017. Note that there can be delays between the date a case is filed and when it shows up on PACER. If there are filings from this period that have yet to be posted on PACER, this FOIA Project list may not be complete.

Click on a case title below to view details for that case, including links to the associated docket and complaint documents.

1. CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY v. U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS et al (filed May 31, 2017)
   The Center for Biological Diversity submitted a FOIA request to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for records concerning building barriers on the U.S.-Mexican border or U.S.-Canadian border prepared for the Trump administration transition team. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request. The Center for Biological Diversity also submitted a FOIA request to the Department of Homeland Security for same records. The agency told the Center that the records responsive to its request were available online. The Center filed an administrative appeal of that response. The Center sent the same request to U.S. Customs and Board Protection. That agency acknowledged receipt of the request. After hearing nothing further from the agencies, the Center for Biological Diversity filed suit.
   Issues: Adequacy – Search, Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
2. Wright v. State of Georgia et al (filed Jun 1, 2017)
   Mark Wright filed suit against the Clerk of Court for Fulton County, Georgia, after his request for records concerning his trial went unanswered. This is not a federal FOIA case.
   Issues: FOIA mentioned only tangentially
3. JUDICIAL WATCH, INC. v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION (filed May 30, 2017)
   Judicial Watch submitted a FOIA request to the Department of Education for records concerning the potential implications for federal voucher or school choice policy in light of the anticipated conclusions of the January 2017 report entitled “School Improvement Grants: Implementation and Effectiveness.” The agency acknowledged receipt of the request, but after hearing nothing further from the agency, Judicial Watch filed suit.
   Issues: Adequacy – Search, Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees, Litigation – Vaughn index
4. ELECTRONIC FRONTIER FOUNDATION v. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (filed May 31, 2017)
   The Electronic Frontier Foundation submitted a FOIA request to the FBI for records concerning the use of informants at Best Buy facilities. EFF also requested inclusion in the news media fee category. The FBI told EFF that it would neither confirm nor deny the existence of records concerning an investigation. EFF filed an administrative appeal with the Office of Information Policy, but after hearing nothing further from the agency, EFF filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Fee Category – Media or Educational, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
5. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency et al (filed May 31, 2017)
   The Natural Resources Defense Council submitted FOIA requests to a number of agencies for communications with the Trump transition team. After hearing nothing further from any of the agencies, NRDC filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees, Public Interest Fee Waiver
6. CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY v. U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (filed Jun 1, 2017)
   The Center for Biological Diversity submitted a FOIA request to the EPA for records concerning the Trump administration’s Executive Order requiring the agency to review and rescind or revise its definition of the scope of waters protected by the Clean Water Act. The Center also requested a fee waiver. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request and granted the Center’s request for a fee waiver. However, after hearing nothing further from the agency, the Center for Biological Diversity filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
7. SOUTHERN UTAH WILDERNESS ALLIANCE v. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (filed Jun 2, 2017)
   The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance submitted a FOIA request to the Department of Justice for records concerning communications between the agency and attorneys or representatives of the litigants in Wyoming v. Jewell. The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance submitted two more FOIA requests to the agency for communications with attorneys involved in several other named cases. The agency acknowledged receipt of the requests, but after hearing nothing further from the agency, the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees, Litigation – Vaughn index
8. Cox v. Department of Justice et al (filed Jun 2, 2017)
   Douglas Cox, a law library professor at City University of New York Law School, submitted FOIA requests to the Department of Justice, the FBI, the Department of Defense, the Department of State, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence for a copy of the Senate torture report. The Justice Department told Cox that the report was not an agency record. The FBI told Cox that it could not find the report. Cox filed an administrative appeal of that decision. The other agencies failed to respond on time. Cox then filed suit against all the agencies.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Recovery of Costs