Berk v. EOUSA, No. 21-10693, 2022 WL 17337821 (5th Cir. Nov. 30, 2022) (per curiam)

Berk v. EOUSA, No. 21-10693, 2022 WL 17337821 (5th Cir. Nov. 30, 2022) (per curiam)

Re:  Requests for records concerning requester

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

• Litigation Considerations, Adequacy of Search:  The Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit holds that “the agencies provided detailed descriptions of their search methods along with the relevant records.”  “[The requester] presented nothing but speculation that either EOUSA or DHS failed to account for responsive documents.”  “Further, the agencies reasonably excluded non-responsive documents that fell outside the request’s scope and reasonably excluded [certain other] records . . . because [the requester’s] counsel, at the time, did not request those records in his narrowed list of requested files.”
   
• Litigation Considerations, Vaughn Index/Declaration:  The Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit holds that “the agencies produced lengthy documentation with specific explanations of what they withheld and why each exemption applied. This information, contradicted only by [the requester’s] conclusory assertions, carried their burden under FOIA.”