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03/16/2020

Gone in an Instant: How Instant Messaging Threatens the Freedom of Information Act

New Report: Federal Agencies Violating Federal Law,  
Not Preserving Instant Messaging Records

Arlington, VA (March 16, 2020)—Cause of Action Institute (“CoA Institute”) and Americans for Prosperity Foundation (“AFPF”) today released an investigative report, Gone in an Instant: How Instant Messaging Threatens the Freedom of Information Act. The report reveals how numerous federal agencies are violating federal records law and guidance from the National Archives by not preserving instant messaging (“IM”) records. Like email in the 1990s, IM’s increasing integration into the workplace is changing the way people do business. In 2014, Congress amended the Federal Records Act to specifically require that electronic messages be retained. Agencies’ failure to preserve records created on IM platforms (Slack, Teams, Hangouts, etc.), which are prevalent in the workplace, threatens to undermine the Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) and put much of the federal government in the dark.  

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02/19/2020

Family Fishermen Challenge Illegal, Industry-Killing At-Sea Monitoring Rule from Department of Commerce

Arlington, VA (Feb. 19, 2020) – Cause of Action Institute (“CoA Institute”) today filed a lawsuit on behalf of a group of New Jersey family fishermen to block a new regulation that would force them to pay for third-party “at-sea monitors.”  The industry-killing rule—which was designed by the New England Fishery Management Council and promulgated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and U.S. Department of Commerce—will require certain boats in the Atlantic herring fishery to carry “at-sea monitors” and at their own cost. Learn More

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01/16/2020

Cause of Action Institute Files Appeal with D.C. Circuit to Secure FOIA Access to Internet Browsing History Records

Arlington, VA (Jan. 16, 2020) – Earlier this week, Cause of Action Institute (“CoA Institute”) filed a notice of appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in Cause of Action Institute v. White House Office of Management and Budget, a Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) lawsuit concerning access government officials’ Internet browsing histories.  The appeal seeks to overturn the district court’s determination that such records are outside the scope of disclosure, even when they are created on government-issued computers in the course of official business.  CoA Institute field the underlying lawsuit against the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) and the Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) in June 2018.

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01/16/2020

Cause of Action Institute Files Transparency Lawsuit Against California State Controller on behalf of OpenTheBooks.com

Arlington, VA (Jan. 16, 2020) – Last week, Cause of Action Institute (“CoA Institute”) filed a California Public Records Act lawsuit against the California State Controller on behalf of its clients, OpenTheBooks.com and Adam Andrzejewski.  The lawsuit seeks to compel the agency to release records concerning state spending information, including records reflecting line-by-line vendor payments.  OpenTheBooks.com, founded and led by Mr. Andrzejewski, is the largest private repository of United States public-sector spending.  It has been trying to acquire checkbook data from the Controller for over six years, but it has faced continual delay, silence, and obfuscation.

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11/13/2019

CoA Institute Urges Supreme Court to Rein In FTC’s Unconstitutional Pursuit of Money Damages

Washington, D.C. (November 13, 2019) – Today, Cause of Action Institute (“CoA Institute”) filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Supreme Court supporting cert petitions filed by AMG Capital Management and Publishers Business Services. The petitions urge the Court to review the Federal Trade Commission’s (“FTC”) claim that Section 13(b) of the FTC Act, which authorizes injunctions, also grants the agency power to obtain money damages, raid businesses, and impose asset freezes and receiverships.

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09/10/2019

Cause of Action Sues Commerce Department for Failing to Release Section 232 Uranium Report

Washington, D.C. (Sept. 10, 2019) – Cause of Action Institute (CoA Institute) has stepped up its ongoing battle with the Department of Commerce (Commerce) by suing the agency for failing to respond to its Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests seeking access to the agency’s final report to the President regarding its Section 232 investigation into the “Effect of Imports of Uranium on the National Security” and the Department of Defense’s response letter to that report. Learn More

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08/6/2019

Court Approves Consent Agreement in Federal Trade Commission v. D-Link Systems

WASHINGTON D.C. (August 6, 2019) – Today, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California entered a consent order between the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and D-Link Systems, Inc. Cause of Action Institute has represented D-Link Systems throughout this matter. This joint resolution resolves the FTC’s allegations about the security practices D-Link Systems used for its products. D-Link Systems is an industry leader in Internet of Things (“IoT”) and networking solutions.

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