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Case TitleAMERICA FIRST LEGAL FOUNDATION v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
DistrictDistrict of Columbia
CityWashington, DC
Case Number1:2022cv01897
Date Filed2022-06-30
Date ClosedOpen
JudgeJudge Carl J. Nichols
PlaintiffAMERICA FIRST LEGAL FOUNDATION
Case DescriptionAmerica First Legal Foundation submitted a FOIA request to the Department of State for records concerning political appointees and their ethics obligations. AFLF also asked for a fee waiver. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request. The agency told AFLF that it would be unable to process the request within the statutory time limit. After hearing nothing further from the agency, AFLF filed suit.
Complaint issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy - Search, Litigation - Attorney's fees

DefendantU.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Documents
Docket
Complaint
Complaint attachment 1
Complaint attachment 2
Complaint attachment 3
Complaint attachment 4
Complaint attachment 5
Complaint attachment 6
Complaint attachment 7
Complaint attachment 8
User-contributed Documents
 
Docket Events (Hide)
Date FiledDoc #Docket Text

2022-06-301COMPLAINT against U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE ( Filing fee $ 402 receipt number ADCDC-9343503) filed by AMERICA FIRST LEGAL FOUNDATION. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A:State Request, # 2 Exhibit B:20-day Letter, # 3 Exhibit C:Acknowledgment, # 4 Exhibit D:Status Update Request, # 5 Exhibit E:Update, # 6 Exhibit F:Status Update, # 7 Civil Cover Sheet, # 8 Summons)(Field, Brian) (Entered: 06/30/2022)
2022-07-012LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by AMERICA FIRST LEGAL FOUNDATION (Field, Brian) (Entered: 07/01/2022)
2022-07-05Case Assigned to Judge Carl J. Nichols. (zmh) (Entered: 07/05/2022)
2022-07-053SUMMONS (3) Issued Electronically as to U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, U.S. Attorney and U.S. Attorney General (Attachment: # 1 Notice and Consent)(zmh) (Entered: 07/05/2022)
2022-07-264STANDING ORDER. Signed by Judge Carl J. Nichols on July 26, 2022. (lccjn3) (Entered: 07/26/2022)
2022-07-265RETURN 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 Decl. of K. Robinson w Exs)(Field, Brian) (Entered: 07/26/2022)
2022-07-266RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE served on 7/14/2022 (Attachments: # 1 Declaration Decl. of K. Robinson w Exs)(Field, Brian) (Entered: 07/26/2022)
2022-07-267RETURN 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 Decl. of K. Robinson w Exs)(Field, Brian) (Entered: 07/26/2022)
2022-08-048NOTICE of Appearance by Hannah Solomon-Strauss on behalf of U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE (Solomon-Strauss, Hannah) (Entered: 08/04/2022)
2022-08-049NOTICE of Appearance by Giselle Barcia on behalf of U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE (Barcia, Giselle) (Entered: 08/04/2022)
2022-08-0410ANSWER to Complaint by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE.(Solomon-Strauss, Hannah) (Entered: 08/04/2022)
2022-08-05NOTICE 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. FYI: Attorney signature must match login/password for all future fillings. (zed, ) (Entered: 08/05/2022)
2022-08-15MINUTE ORDER. Before the Court in this Freedom of Information Act case are a Complaint and an Answer. Pursuant to Local Civil Rule 16.3, the requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f) are inapplicable. It is hereby ORDERED that the Parties shall confer and file a Joint Status Report on or before September 2, 2022. The Joint Status Report shall address: (1) the status of Plaintiff's FOIA request; (2) the anticipated number of documents responsive to Plaintiff's FOIA request; (3) the anticipated date(s) for release of the documents requested by Plaintiff; (4) whether a motion for stay is likely under Open America v. Watergate Special Prosecution Force, 547 F.2d 605 (D.C. Cir. 1976); (5) the possibility of prioritizing documents responsive to Plaintiff's request[s] and any discussions regarding whether Plaintiffs request[s] can be narrowed; and (6) whether the Parties anticipate summary judgment briefing and, if so, a proposed briefing schedule. Signed by Judge Carl J. Nichols on August 15, 2022. (lccjn3) (Entered: 08/15/2022)
2022-08-15Set/Reset Deadlines: Joint Status Report due by 9/2/2022. (zcal) (Entered: 08/15/2022)
2022-08-2511NOTICE OF RELATED CASE by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE. Case related to (Barcia, Giselle) (Main Document 11 replaced on 8/26/2022) (zed). (Main Document 11 replaced on 8/26/2022) (zed). (Entered: 08/25/2022)
2022-09-02MINUTE 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)
2022-09-0212Joint STATUS REPORT by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE. (Barcia, Giselle) (Entered: 09/02/2022)
2022-09-08MINUTE ORDER. Upon consideration of the Parties' 12 Joint Status Report, it is hereby ORDERED that the next Joint Status Report in this matter shall be filed on or before October 3, 2022, unless issues arise earlier that necessitate the Court's intervention. Signed by Judge Carl J. Nichols on September 8, 2022. (lccjn3) (Entered: 09/08/2022)
2022-09-08Set/Reset Deadlines: Joint Status Report due by 10/3/2022. (zcal) (Entered: 09/08/2022)
2022-10-0313Joint STATUS REPORT by AMERICA FIRST LEGAL FOUNDATION. (Field, Brian) (Entered: 10/03/2022)
2022-10-05MINUTE ORDER. Upon consideration of 13 the Joint Status Report, it is hereby ORDERED that the next Joint Status Report in this matter shall be filed on or before November 22, 2022, unless issues arise earlier that necessitate the Court's intervention. Signed by Judge Carl J. Nichols on October 5, 2022. (lccjn3) (Entered: 10/05/2022)
2022-10-05Set/Reset Deadlines: Joint Status Report due by 11/22/2022. (zcal) (Entered: 10/05/2022)
2022-11-2214Joint STATUS REPORT by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE. (Barcia, Giselle) (Entered: 11/22/2022)
2022-11-30MINUTE ORDER. Upon consideration of 14 the Joint Status Report, it is hereby ORDERED that the next Joint Status Report in this matter shall be filed on or before January 23, 2023, and additional Joint Status Reports shall be filed every 60 days thereafter, unless issues arise earlier that necessitate the Court's intervention. Signed by Judge Carl J. Nichols on November 30, 2022. (lccjn3) (Entered: 11/30/2022)
2022-11-30Set/Reset Deadlines: Joint Status Report due by 1/23/2023. (zcam) (Entered: 11/30/2022)
2023-01-1815Joint STATUS REPORT by AMERICA FIRST LEGAL FOUNDATION. (Field, Brian) (Entered: 01/18/2023)
2023-03-1716Joint STATUS REPORT by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE. (Barcia, Giselle) (Entered: 03/17/2023)
2023-05-1917Joint STATUS REPORT by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE. (Barcia, Giselle) (Entered: 05/19/2023)
2023-07-1818Joint STATUS REPORT by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE. (Barcia, Giselle) (Entered: 07/18/2023)
2023-09-1519Joint STATUS REPORT by AMERICA FIRST LEGAL FOUNDATION. (Field, Brian) (Entered: 09/15/2023)
2023-11-1420Joint STATUS REPORT by U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE. (Barcia, Giselle) (Entered: 11/14/2023)
2024-01-1721Joint STATUS REPORT by AMERICA FIRST LEGAL FOUNDATION. (Field, Brian) (Entered: 01/17/2024)
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