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.

This website includes decisions decided since May 2009.  That period coincides with the Spring 2009 completion of the most recent edition of the United States Department of Justice Guide to the Freedom of Information Act.

All decisions are presented both chronologically, based on the month of issuance, and topically.  To facilitate their review, each decision is broken down by exemption or procedural element.  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.

Adequacy of Administrative Record	In Forma Pauperis Status
Adequacy of Affidavit	Injunctive Relief
Adequacy of Declarant	Jurisdiction
Adequacy of Search	Litigation Considerations
Administrative Procedure Act	Mandamus Relief
Agency Records	Mootness
Agency Requirements	Motion for Contempt
Allegations of Bad Faith	Motion for Reconsideration
Allegations of Wrongdoing	Motion for Summary Judgment
Amending the Complaint	Motion To Dismiss
Appointment of Counsel	Motion to Intervene
Attorney Fees	Motion to Reopen
Brady or Jencks Act	Official Acknowledgment
Burden of Proof	Open Government Act Amendment
Common Interest Doctrine	Procedural
Costs	Proper Party Defendant
Damages	Protective Order
Declarations	Public Domain
Declaratory	Publication of Regulations
Delay	Reasonably Described Records
Discovery	Referral of Record
Discretionary	Referral of Request
Exclusion	Referral to Special Counsel
Exemption 1	Remand
Exemption 2	Responsiveness
Exemption 3	Reverse FOIA
Exemption 4	Sanctions
Exemption 5	Scope of Intervention
Exemption 6	Sealed Documents
Exemption 7	Sealing Orders
Exemption 7A	Segregability
Exemption 7C	Settlement Agreement
Exemption 7D	Standard of Review
Exemption 7E	Standing
Exemption 7F	Statute of Limitations
Exemption 8	Stay of Proceedings
Exemption Claims	Summary Affirmance
Exhaustion	Summary Judgement
Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies	Supplemental Order
Expedited Processing	Submitter Notice
Fees and Fee Waiver	Timeliness
Glomar	Validity of Third Party Waiver
In Camera Declaration	Vaughn Index
In Camera Inspection	Venue
In Camera Review	Waiver