CLCMA attorneys are helping their clients fight back against the government’s repeated and pervasive failure to comply with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
Most recently, CLCMA filed two FOIA lawsuits on behalf of Mr. Lassana Magassa, against the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Mr. Magassa submitted FOIA requests to both agencies and received little to nothing in response. Based on CLCMA’s representation of Mr. Magassa in other litigation and administrative matters, and the documents received through those avenues, CLCMA knew the responses by these agencies to be inadequate, and accordingly unlawful.
“These federal agencies have not met their burdens to justify withholding hundreds of documents responsive to our clients’ requests, and instead attempt to justify their actions by merely regurgitating the statutory standards for the exemptions they claim apply,” said Christina A. Jump, Civil Litigation Department Head at CLCMA. “Mr. Magassa is entitled to the documents he seeks from the TSA and the FBI, based on the requirements that the requested agencies demonstrate to the court that their withholdings aren’t improper.”
In pursuing Mr. Magassa’s action and many others, CLCMA hopes to bring better government agency compliance with FOIA’s requirements, and in doing so ensure that public trust in government systems may continue.
