FOIA Advisor

Court opinions issued Sept. 16, 2021

Court Opinions (2015-2023)Allan BlutsteinComment

Flyers Rights Educ. Fund v. FAA (D.D.C.) -- ruling that FAA properly relied on Exemption 4 in withholding records concerning the Boeing Company’s design changes to its 737 MAX jet airplane. In reaching its decision, the court rejected plaintiff’s arguments that FAA’s public commitment to “transparency” undermined agency’s assurances of confidentiality to Boeing or that alleged “importance” or “necessity” of withheld materials to public had any relevance under Exemption 4.

Office of Fulton Cnty. Dist. Att’y v. DOJ (N.D. Ga.) -- deciding that plaintiff was eligible for and entitled to attorneys' fees and litigation costs in case involving internal investigative records of U.S.Marshals Service employees, noting that the agency’s initial reliance on Exemption 7(A) to withhold records had been unreasonable.

Summaries of all published opinions issued since April 2015 are available here.