Scarlett v. Off. of Inspector Gen., No. 21-819, 2022 WL 111236 (D.D.C. Jan. 10, 2022) (Moss, J.)

Scarlett v. Off. of Inspector Gen., No. 21-819, 2022 WL 111236 (D.D.C. Jan. 10, 2022) (Moss, J.)

Re:  Request for records concerning OIG complaint filed against plaintiff 

Disposition:  Denying plaintiff's motion for leave to file amended complaint

• Litigation Considerations, Pleadings:  "Although the Rule 15(a)(2) standard is a liberal one, it is not without substance, and, here, the Court is unpersuaded that the interests of justice would be served by granting Plaintiff leave to amend."  "That is because the new claims that Plaintiff seeks to add to this action, which has been pending for almost nine months, 'bear[ ] no more than a tangential relationship to the original action' and would substantially 'alter the scope and nature of the litigation.'"  The court finds that "'the new claims do not involve the same evidence or substantially the same legal issues as the existing claims, and the new claims would likely require expanding the scope of discovery'" and "[n]either efficiency nor fairness counsels in favor of combing FOIA litigation with litigation of unrelated claims, even if records released pursuant to the FOIA request might support those claims."
  
  The court further relates that "Plaintiff's delay in seeking to amend her complaint further undermines her motion."  "These events long precede the filing of this suit . . . and Plaintiff offers no reason why she could not have included these additional claims in her original complaint."  The court notes that "OIG's motion for summary judgment is due in a matter of days . . . ."  "Finally, although the Court denies Plaintiff's motion, nothing in this order precludes her from filing a separate action to pursue those claims she seeks to add to this case."