Freedom Watch, Inc. v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE ANTITRUST DIVISION, et al and 12 other new FOIA lawsuits

We have added 72 documents from 12 FOIA cases filed between July 9, 2023 and July 15, 2023. 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. Freedom Watch, Inc. v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE ANTITRUST DIVISION, et al (filed Jul 14, 2023)
   Freedom Watch submitted a FOIA request to the Department of Justice for records concerning the investigation of former President Trump and his corporate entities. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request but after hearing nothing further from the agency, Freedom Watch filed suit.
   Issues: Litigation – Attorney’s fees, Adequacy – Search, Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Public Interest Fee Waiver
2. LEOPOLD et al v. FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCECORPORATION (filed Jul 10, 2023)
   Journalist Jason Leopold submitted seven FOIA requests to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for records concerning the failure of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. Leopold also requested a fee waiver. The agency acknowledged receipt of the requests but after hearing nothing further from the agency, Leopold filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees, Adequacy – Search
3. SOBEL v. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (filed Jul 10, 2023)
   David Sobel submitted a FOIA request to the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys for records concerning all documents obtained from Google in response to a subpoena dated May 1, 2020. After hearing nothing further from EOUSA, Sobel filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
4. American Civil Liberties Union v. United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement et al (filed Jul 11, 2023)
   ACLU submitted a FOIA request to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for records concerning the legal library materials provided in electronic form at all ICE facilities. The ACLU also requested a fee waiver and inclusion in the news media fee category. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request. The agency granted the ACLU’s request for a fee waiver. After hearing nothing further from the agency, the ACLU filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
5. ANIMAL PARTISAN v. FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION (filed Jul 11, 2023)
   Animal Partisan submitted a FOIA request to the FBI for records concerning two conferences NAMI’s 2020 and 2022 Animal Care and Handling Conferences. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request but told Animal Partisan that it could find no responsive records. Animal Partisan filed another FOIA request for the records. This time the FBI denied disclosure under Exemption 7(A) (interference with ongoing investigation or proceeding). Animal Partisan filed an administrative appeal of the denial. The Office of Information Policy upheld the FBI’s denial and Animal Partisan filed suit.
   Issues: Litigation – Attorney’s fees, Adequacy – Search
6. Torres Consulting and Law Group v. Federal Aviation Administration (filed Jul 12, 2023)
   Torres Consulting and Law Group submitted a FOIA request to the Federal Aviation Administration for records concerning the construction contract for the Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request. The agency denied the request under Exemption 4 (commercial and confidential). TCLG filed an administrative appeal of the denial. After hearing nothing further from the agency, TCLG filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
7. LEOPOLD et al v. BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM (filed Jul 12, 2023)
   Journalist Jason Leopold submitted eight FOIA requests to the Federal Reserve for records concerning the failure of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request. After hearing nothing further from the agency, Leopold filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy – Search, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
8. AMERICAN WILD HORSE CAMPAIGN v. BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT (filed Jul 12, 2023)
   American Wild Horse Campaign submitted a FOIA request to the Bureau of Land Management for records concerning tracking log for stillborn fetuses or foals that are dead at birth. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request. After hearing nothing further from the agency, AWHC filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy – Search, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
9. Bey v. Social Security Administration (filed Jul 13, 2023)
   Hannibal Mu Bey filed suit against the Social Security Administration. This is not a FOIA case.
   Issues: FOIA not mentioned
10. JUDICIAL WATCH, INC. v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (filed Jul 14, 2023)
    Judicial Watch submitted a FOIA request to the Secret Service for records concerning Secret Service protection for Navy Joan Roberts, the daughter of Hunter Biden and the grand daughter of President Joe Biden. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request. The agency told Judicial Watch that it found no responsive records. Judicial Watch filed an administrative appeal of the no records response. After hearing nothing further from the agency, Judicial Watch filed suit.
    Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy – Search, Litigation – Vaughn index, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
11. PROTECT THE PUBLIC'S TRUST v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (filed Jul 14, 2023)
    Protect the Public’s Trust submitted a FOIA request to the Department of Health and Human Services for records concerning communications between HHS officials and White House officials identified in the request regarding Dr. Rick Bright, his whistleblower complaint and the settlement of that complaint. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request. The agency asked PPT for clarification. PPT provided a long list of names it wanted searched. After hearing nothing further from the agency, PPT filed suit.
    Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
12. Tepe v. Corker et al (filed Jul 14, 2023)
    Mawule Tepe filed suit against the district court. This is not a FOIA case.
    Issues: FOIA not mentioned

In addition, we have added 1 document from 1 case, with an earlier filing date, that has recently appeared on PACER.

• Incorrectly Filed (filed Jul 6, 2023)