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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.

View Court Decisions
Displaying 1 - 10 of 3935

Cottom v. DOJ, No. 23-6307, 2025 WL 2802396 (W.D.N.Y. Oct. 2, 2025) (Holland, Mag. J.)

Cottom v. DOJ, No. 23-6307, 2025 WL 2802396 (W.D.N.Y. Oct. 2, 2025) (Holland, Mag. J.)

Re: Request for all “Operation Torpedo” Network Investigation Technique Reports

Disposition:  Denying plaintiff’s motion for order directing defendant to file Vaughn Index and declaration by set date

  • Litigation Considerations, Evidentiary Showing, Declarations & Vaughn Index:  The court relates that “the parties...

Cahill v. U.S. Dep’t of Com., No. 25-5168, 2025 WL 2812897 (D.C. Cir. Oct. 1, 2025) (per curiam)

Cahill v. U.S. Dep’t of Com., No. 25-5168, 2025 WL 2812897 (D.C. Cir. Oct. 1, 2025) (per curiam)

Re: Request for audio recording of Patent Trial and Appeals Board oral argument for plaintiff’s patent case

Disposition:  Granting government’s motion for summary affirmance

  • Attorney Fees, Eligibility & Litigation Considerations, Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies:  The Court of Appeals for the...

Farahi v. FBI, No. 23-5243, 2025 WL 2779266 (D.C. Cir. Sept. 30, 2025) (Katsas, J.)

Farahi v. FBI, No. 23-5243, 2025 WL 2779266 (D.C. Cir. Sept. 30, 2025) (Katsas, J.)

Re: Requests for records concerning requester’s immigration proceedings

Disposition:  Affirming district court’s grant of government’s motion for summary judgment

  • Exemption 7(A): The Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit “agree[s] with the district court that the FBI carried its burden here.”  “The...

Heritage Found. v. DOJ, No. 24-53, 2025 WL 2781704 (D. Del. Sept. 30, 2025) (Noreika, J.)

Heritage Found. v. DOJ, No. 24-53, 2025 WL 2781704 (D. Del. Sept. 30, 2025) (Noreika, J.)

Re: Request for records concerning investigation and prosecution of Robert Hunter Biden

Disposition:  Granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment; denying plaintiffs’ cross-motion for summary judgment

  • Litigation Considerations, Declarations:  The court relates that “Plaintiffs claim that the declaration of...

Am. Transparency v. HHS, No. 21-02821, 2025 WL 2779929 (D.D.C. Sept. 30, 2025) (Mehta, J.)

Am. Transparency v. HHS, No. 21-02821, 2025 WL 2779929 (D.D.C. Sept. 30, 2025) (Mehta, J.)

Re: Request for records concerning royalties paid to National Institutes of Health employed inventors

Disposition:  Denying defendant’s motion for summary judgment; denying plaintiff’s cross-motion for summary judgment

  • Exemption 6: The court holds that “Defendant . . . is not entitled to withhold the requested...

Doe v. ICE, No. 24-617, 2025 WL 2779793 (D.D.C. Sept. 30, 2025) (Kelly, J.)

Doe v. ICE, No. 24-617, 2025 WL 2779793 (D.D.C. Sept. 30, 2025) (Kelly, J.)

Re: Request for records concerning defendant’s disclosure of information regarding plaintiff’s request for asylum to third parties

Disposition:  Denying defendant’s motion for summary judgment; denying plaintiff’s cross-motion for summary judgment

  • Exemption 5, Deliberative Process Privilege, Attorney Work-Product Privilege &...

McKathan v. DHS, No. 22-1865, 2025 WL 2779934 (D.D.C. Sept. 30, 2025) (Friedrich, J.)

McKathan v. DHS, No. 22-1865, 2025 WL 2779934 (D.D.C. Sept. 30, 2025) (Friedrich, J.)

Re: Request for records concerning plaintiff’s prosecution for child pornography

Disposition:  Granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment; denying plaintiff’s cross-motion for summary judgment

  • Litigation Considerations, Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies:  The court holds that “[plaintiff’s] failure to...

Eckert v. City of Buffalo, No. 22-540, 2025 WL 2793580 (W.D.N.Y. Sept. 30, 2025) (Vilardo, J.)

Eckert v. City of Buffalo, No. 22-540, 2025 WL 2793580 (W.D.N.Y. Sept. 30, 2025) (Vilardo, J.)

Re: Request for records concerning property dispute

Disposition:  Dismissing plaintiff’s FOIA claim

  • Procedural Requirements, Entities Subject to the FOIA:  The court relates that “[plaintiff] also asserts claims against Erie County under FOIA, 5 U.S.C. § 552 . . . .”  The court finds that “[that] claim[]...

Lowe v. DOJ, No. 23-1593, 2025 WL 2751199 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 29, 2025) (Cronan, J.)

Lowe v. DOJ, No. 23-1593, 2025 WL 2751199 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 29, 2025) (Cronan, J.)

Re: Request for records concerning plaintiff’s criminal prosecution and conviction

Disposition:  Overruling plaintiff’s objection adopting magistrate judge’s report and recommendation; denying plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment; granting defendant’s cross-motion for partial summary judgment

  • Procedural Requirements...

Khatchadourian v. FBI, No. 22-03734, 2025 WL 2761891 (D.D.C. Sept. 29, 2025) (Ali, J.)

Khatchadourian v. FBI, No. 22-03734, 2025 WL 2761891 (D.D.C. Sept. 29, 2025) (Ali, J.)

Re: Request for records concerning James Ralph Rose, Jr., who was convicted of explosives trafficking about 45 years ago and died about 30 years ago

Disposition:  Granting in part and denying in part defendant’s motion for summary judgment; granting in part and denying in part plaintiff’s cross-motion for partial...