U.S. Department
of Justice
Court Decisions Overview
Each year the federal courts issue hundreds of decisions in FOIA cases, addressing all aspects of the law. These decisions shape the way the law is interpreted and applied by the many attorneys and access professionals across the government who handle FOIA requests, administrative appeals, and litigation. To aid those professionals, and to facilitate greater understanding of the FOIA overall, OIP posts summaries of FOIA decisions to this website.
Although we have designed these summaries to reflect the key aspects of each decision, by their nature these are summaries only, and such things as internal citations and quotations have been omitted. Our goal is to provide readers with an overview of the cases as they are decided during the year, but for a complete understanding of any given case readers are, of course, encouraged to read it in its entirety.
Using the Court Decisions Page
This website includes decisions decided since January 2013. Summaries of decisions decided between May 2009 and December 2012 are available in the Court Decisions Archive. All decisions are presented chronologically, based on the date of issuance, with the most recent decision appearing first. Each decision is tagged topically with the relevant exemption or procedural consideration addressed.
You can view all decisions tagged with a particular topic or court by using the “Topic” drop down menu. For example, to see all cases where Exemption 5 is addressed, select “Exemption 5.”
You can search through each decision summary for keywords or phrases using the “Keyword Search” feature. For example, to see all cases with a particular term, such as “e-mail” or “affirming,” you can type in the term or phrase to retrieve all court decision summaries where it appears. You can also use this feature to locate decisions from a particular court by searching for the court acronym, such as “D.C. Cir” for all decisions from the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
Friends of the River v. U.S. Army Corps of Eng’rs, No. 16-2327, 2025 WL 2267528 (D.D.C. Aug. 8, 2025) (Faruqui, Mag. J.)
Friends of the River v. U.S. Army Corps of Eng’rs, No. 16-2327, 2025 WL 2267528 (D.D.C. Aug. 8, 2025) (Faruqui, Mag. J.)
Re: Requests for records concerning operation and management of dams on Yuba River and their effect on several fish species protected by Endangered Species Act
Disposition: Granting in part and denying in part plaintiff’s motion for attorney fees; awarding plaintiff $491,676.60...
Korf v. U.S. Dep’t of State, No. 25-20830, 2025 WL 2256143 (S.D. Fla. Aug. 7, 2025) (Elfenbein, Mag. J.)
Korf v. U.S. Dep’t of State, No. 25-20830, 2025 WL 2256143 (S.D. Fla. Aug. 7, 2025) (Elfenbein, Mag. J.)
Re: Request for records concerning plaintiff, as well as nationalization of PrivatBank in Ukraine
Disposition: Denying defendant’s motion to stay; denying plaintiff’s motion to strike defendant’s reply
- Litigation Considerations, “Open America” Stays of Proceedings: “Because Defendant has neither...
Brook v. Holzerland, No. 24-40640, 25-40014, 2025 WL 2254514 (5th Cir. Aug. 7, 2025) (per curiam)
Brook v. Holzerland, No. 24-40640, 25-40014, 2025 WL 2254514 (5th Cir. Aug. 7, 2025) (per curiam)
Re: Requests for records concerning requester
Disposition: Affirming district court’s dismissal of requester’s FOIA claim
- Litigation Considerations, Statute of Limitations: The Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit holds that “FOIA suits are governed by a six-year statute of limitations.” “For [one...
Driggs v. CIA, No. 23-1124, 2025 WL 2242761 (E.D. Va. Aug. 6, 2025) (Novak, J.)
Driggs v. CIA, No. 23-1124, 2025 WL 2242761 (E.D. Va. Aug. 6, 2025) (Novak, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning Americans allegedly held as prisoners of war (“POWs”) following Korean and Vietnam Wars
Disposition: Dismissing certain plaintiffs from suit; denying remaining plaintiffs’ motions for summary judgment and in camera inspection; granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment
- Litigation...
Rute v. DOJ, No. 22-168, 2025 WL 2210727 (E.D. Tex. Aug. 4, 2025) (Mazzant, J.)
Rute v. DOJ, No. 22-168, 2025 WL 2210727 (E.D. Tex. Aug. 4, 2025) (Mazzant, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning certain public integrity investigations
Disposition: Granting in part and denying in part defendants’ motion for summary judgment; granting in part and denying in part plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment
- Litigation Considerations, Mootness and Other Grounds for Dismissal: The court...
Power the Future v. White House Council on Env’t Quality, No. 24-1942, 2025 WL 2206947 (D.D.C. Aug. 4, 2025) (Contreras, J.)
Power the Future v. White House Council on Env’t Quality, No. 24-1942, 2025 WL 2206947 (D.D.C. Aug. 4, 2025) (Contreras, J.)
Re: Request for certain emails sent to or from or cc’ing Chief of Staff of the Council on Environmental Quality from June 30, 2021 through May 31, 2024
Disposition: Granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment
- Procedural Requirements, Proper FOIA Requests: “The Court...
Citizens for Resp. & Ethics in Wash. v. DOJ, No. 24-02416, 2025 WL 2206945 (D.D.C. Aug. 4, 2025) (Ali, J.)
Citizens for Resp. & Ethics in Wash. v. DOJ, No. 24-02416, 2025 WL 2206945 (D.D.C. Aug. 4, 2025) (Ali, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning allegations of prosecutorial misconduct by former Assistant United States Attorney
Disposition: Denying defendant’s motion for summary judgment, granting plaintiff’s cross-motion for summary judgment
- Exemption 6; Exemption 7(C): The court holds that “DOJ’s Gl...
Hettena v. CIA, No. 24-5119, 2025 WL 2172528 (D.C. Cir. July 31, 2025) (Garcia, J.)
Hettena v. CIA, No. 24-5119, 2025 WL 2172528 (D.C. Cir. July 31, 2025) (Garcia, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning CIA Inspector General’s November 2005 report following investigation of death of Iraqi national while in CIA custody
Disposition: Vacating district court’s grant of government’s motion for summary judgment; remanding case
- Exemption 1: “[The Court of Appeals for the District of...
Wright v. HHS, No. 22-1378, 2025 WL 2171090 (D.D.C. July 31, 2025) (Contreras, J.)
Wright v. HHS, No. 22-1378, 2025 WL 2171090 (D.D.C. July 31, 2025) (Contreras, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning COVID-19 vaccine safety studies
Disposition: Granting defendant’s motion to extend stay; denying plaintiff’s motion
- Litigation Considerations, “Open America” Stays of Proceedings: “The Court will . . . grant HHS’s motion to extend stay.” “HHS argues that the FDA is entitled to...
Soto-Elliott v. Nebraska, No. 24-290, 2025 WL 2171851 (D. Neb. July 31, 2025) (Bazis, J.)
Soto-Elliott v. Nebraska, No. 24-290, 2025 WL 2171851 (D. Neb. July 31, 2025) (Bazis, J.)
Re: Plaintiff’s allegation that defendant “denied her numerous ‘verbal phone and email FOIA requests’”
Disposition: Dismissing plaintiff’s case
- Procedural Requirements, Entities Subject to the FOIA: The court holds that “FOIA . . . only applies to federal agencies and, thus, has no application to any of the...