Frank LLP v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, No. 16-2105, 2018 WL 4211329 (D.D.C. September 4, 2018) (Friedrich, J.)

Frank LLP v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, No. 16-2105, 2018 WL 4211329 (D.D.C. September 4, 2018)  (Friedrich, J.)

Re:  Investigational hearing transcripts

Disposition:  Granting defendant's motion for summary judgment

• Exemption 7(E): In response to the plaintiff's argument that the defendant's "methods in questioning [affiants]" are not exempt under 7(E) "because the CFPB could not have employed any interviewing methods that are particularly unknown to the public," the court explains that release of this information would allow entities "to coach future witnesses in similar cases on how to avoid providing incriminating information."  The court further finds that the defendant "has shown such a risk of circumvention [of the law], whether it was required to or not."