Nov. 20, 2020

W. Res. Legal Ctr. v. NOAA (D. Or.) -- concluding that: (1) plaintiff was not required to administratively appeal from any of agency’s six interim responses or from agency’s final determination issued after plaintiff filed suit; (2) agency did not perform adequate search for records underlying technical guidance pertaining to marine mammals; and (3) agency’s Vaughn Index was insufficient to justify documents withheld in full, but sufficient with respect to redacted documents.

Immerso v. DOL (E.D.N.Y.) -- determining that email provided by company’s outside to counsel to agency’s Administrative Law Judge in connection with workers compensation proceeding was protected as privileged under Exemption 4, consistent with decisions of other courts regarding same email.

Nov. 19. 2020

Nat'l Parks Conservation Ass'n v. U.S. Dep't of Navy (W.D. Wash) -- finding that: (1) agency performed adequate search for records concerning training exercises on or above Olympic National Park, Olympic National Forest, and Olympic Peninsula; (2) agency properly withheld records pursuant to Exemption 5’s attorney-client, attorney work-product, and deliberative process privileges; (3) agency’s withholdings under Exemption 3, in conjunction with 10 U.S.C. § 130e, could not be upheld absent written determination from Secretary of Defense; and (4) agency properly relied on Exemption 6 to withhold identities of records custodians and junior-ranking Navy personnel, but could withhold name of three project managers and needed to provide additional information about Navy personnel and contractors who developed certain environmental records.

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