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.
Project for Priv. & Surveillance Accountability, Inc. v. DOJ, No. 22-5303, 2025 WL 2013623 (D.C. Cir. July 18, 2025) (Millett, J.)
Project for Priv. & Surveillance Accountability, Inc. v. DOJ, No. 22-5303, 2025 WL 2013623 (D.C. Cir. July 18, 2025) (Millett, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning upstreaming and unmasking of forty-eight named current and former members of congressional intelligence committees, from January 1, 2008, to January 15, 2020
Disposition: Affirming district court’s grant of government’s motion for...
Fouts v. EOUSA, No. 25-5295, 2025 WL 2017451 (S.D.N.Y. July 18, 2025) (Taylor Swain, J.)
Fouts v. EOUSA, No. 25-5295, 2025 WL 2017451 (S.D.N.Y. July 18, 2025) (Taylor Swain, J.)
Re: Requests for records concerning plaintiff and plaintiff’s son
Disposition: Denying plaintiff’s motion for reconsideration
- Litigation Considerations, Venue: The court holds that “Plaintiff has failed to demonstrate that the Court overlooked any controlling law or factual matters when it exercised its...
Brodsky v. FBI, No. 24-2619, 2025 WL 1983885 (7th Cir. July 17, 2025) (per curiam)
Brodsky v. FBI, No. 24-2619, 2025 WL 1983885 (7th Cir. July 17, 2025) (per curiam)
Re: Request for records concerning requester
Disposition: Affirming district court’s grant of government’s motion for summary judgment
- Litigation Considerations, Standard of Review: The Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit notes that “[it] [has] an unusual standard of review in FOIA cases: [it] first review[s]...
Carlborg v. Dep’t of Navy, No. 23-02073, 2025 WL 1994678 (S.D. Cal. July 17, 2025) (Bermudez Montenegro, J.)
Carlborg v. Dep’t of Navy, No. 23-02073, 2025 WL 1994678 (S.D. Cal. July 17, 2025) (Bermudez Montenegro, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning plaintiff’s involuntary discharge from the military
Disposition: Granting defendants’ motion for summary judgment
- Litigation Considerations, Mootness and Other Grounds for Dismissal: “The Court finds that Plaintiff’s claims arising from the FOIA 2 Requests...
Moslem v. DOJ, No. 23-3541, 2025 WL 1984374 (D.D.C. July 17, 2025) (Kelly, J.)
Moslem v. DOJ, No. 23-3541, 2025 WL 1984374 (D.D.C. July 17, 2025) (Kelly, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning criminal investigation of plaintiff
Disposition: Granting defendant’s motion to dismiss
- Litigation Considerations, Jurisdiction: The court holds that “the Court will grant the Tax Division’s motion under Rule 12(b)(1) and dismiss the case against it for lack of subject-matter...
Brown v. FBI, No. 23-5244, 2025 WL 1933347 (D.C. Cir. July 15, 2025) (Walker, J.)
Brown v. FBI, No. 23-5244, 2025 WL 1933347 (D.C. Cir. July 15, 2025) (Walker, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning incident which occurred on December 2, 2015, at Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, CA
Disposition: Affirming district court’s grant of government’s motion for summary judgment
- Procedural Requirements, Searching for Responsive Records; Litigation Considerations, Evidentiary...
Gage v. EEOC, No. 23-4232, 2025 WL 1983947 (9th Cir. July 15, 2025) (per curiam)
Gage v. EEOC, No. 23-4232, 2025 WL 1983947 (9th Cir. July 15, 2025) (per curiam)
Re: Request for records concerning requester
Disposition: Affirming district court’s grant of government’s motion for summary judgment
- Ligation Considerations, Mootness and Other Grounds for Dismissal: The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit holds that “[t]he district court properly granted summary judgment on Count...
Sharpe v. U.S. Fed. Highway Admin., No. 24-3475, 2025 WL 1924926 (9th Cir. July 14, 2025) (per curiam)
Sharpe v. U.S. Fed. Highway Admin., No. 24-3475, 2025 WL 1924926 (9th Cir. July 14, 2025) (per curiam)
Re: Request for communications exchanged between two employees over a two-year period
Disposition: Dismissing appeal as moot, vacating district court’s judgment, and remanding case for further proceedings
- Litigation Considerations, Mootness and Other Grounds for Dismissal: The Court of Appeals for...
Agboke v. DOJ, No. 2024-1976, 2025 WL 1922653 (Fed. Cir. July 14, 2025) (per curiam)
Agboke v. DOJ, No. 2024-1976, 2025 WL 1922653 (Fed. Cir. July 14, 2025) (per curiam)
Re: Request for records concerning Merit System Protection Board hearing regarding [the requester’s] removal
Disposition: In pertinent part, dismissing portion of requester’s appeal relating to his FOIA claim
- Litigation Considerations, Jurisdiction: The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit “agree[s] with the...
Pearce v. Dep’t of the Army, No. 24-520, 2025 WL 1905552 (D.D.C. July 10, 2025) (Sooknanan, J.)
Pearce v. Dep’t of the Army, No. 24-520, 2025 WL 1905552 (D.D.C. July 10, 2025) (Sooknanan, J.)
Re: Request for records concerning plaintiff’s EEOC proceeding
Disposition: Granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment
- Exemption 5, Attorney-Client Privilege: The court relates that, “[h]ere, the Army invokes the attorney-client privilege to partially redact portions of the EEOC summary judgment...