Case 1:15-cv-09002-PKC Document 19 Filed 03/07/16 Page 1 of 22

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES
UNION et al.,
Plaintiffs,
15 Civ. 9002 (PKC)

v.
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF
JUSTICE et al.,
Defendants.

MEMORANDUM OF LAW IN SUPPORT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE’S
MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

PREET BHARARA
United States Attorney
Southern District of New York
Assistant United States Attorney
86 Chambers Street, Third Floor
New York, New York 10007

Arastu K. Chaudhury
Assistant United States Attorney
Of Counsel

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TABLE OF ATUHORITIES
Cases 
ACLU v. DOJ,
321 F. Supp. 2d 24 (D.D.C. 2004) ..................................................................................... 6, 7, 9
ACLU v. DOJ,
681 F.3d 61 (2d Cir. 2012) ................................................................................................... 5, 15
Associated Press v. DOJ,
549 F.3d 62 (2d Cir. 2008) ......................................................................................................... 4
Ass’n of Retired R.R. Workers v. U.S. R.R. Ret. Bd.,
830 F.2d 331 (D.C. Cir. 1987) ................................................................................................. 14
Ball v. A.O. Smith Corp.,
451 F.3d 66 (2d Cir. 2006) ......................................................................................................... 6
Brennan Center v. DOJ,
697 F.3d 184 (2d Cir. 2012) ................................................................................................. 9, 12
Brinton v. Department of State,
636 F.2d 600 (D.C. Cir. 1980) ................................................................................................. 10
Carney v. DOJ,
19 F.3d 807 (2d Cir. 1994) ..................................................................................................... 4, 5
Center for Nat’l Sec. Studies v. DOJ,
331 F.3d 918 (D.C. Cir. 2003) ................................................................................................... 4
CIA v. Sims,
471 U.S. 159 (1985) ................................................................................................................. 16
Croskey v. United States Office of Special Counsel,
No. 96-5114, 1997 WL 702364 (D.C. Cir. Oct. 17, 1997) ........................................................ 6
Department of the Interior v. Klamath Water Users Protective Ass’n,
532 U.S. 1 (2001) ....................................................................................................................... 4
Drake v. Fed. Aviation Admin.,
291 F.3d 59 (D.C. Cir. 2002) ................................................................................................. 6, 9

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Elec. Frontier Found. v. DOJ,
739 F.3d 1, 10 (D.C. Cir. 2014) .......................................................................................... 12, 16
Elec. Privacy Information Ctr. v. Dep’t of Justice,
511 F. Supp. 2d 56, 63 (D.D.C. 2007) ........................................................................................ 8
Elec. Privacy Info. Ctr. v. Dep’t of Justice, Nos. 06- 096, 06-214 (RCL),
2014 WL 1279280 (D.D.C. Mar. 31, 2014) ................................................................. 1, 3 4, 7, 8
Fitzgibbon v. CIA,
911 F.2d 755 (D.C. Cir. 1990) ................................................................................................. 15
Grand Central P’ship, Inc. v. Cuomo,
166 F.3d 473 (1999) ........................................................................................................... 10, 11
Halperin v. CIA,
629 F.2d 144 (D.C. Cir. 1980) ................................................................................................. 15
Hopkins v. HUD,
929 F.2d 81 (2d Cir. 1991) ............................................................................................. 9, 10, 11
In re Country of Erie,
473 F.3d 413 (2d Cir. 2007) ..................................................................................................... 13
In re Grand Jury Investigation,
399 F.3d 527 (2d Cir. 2005) ..................................................................................................... 13
John Doe Agency v. John Doe Corp.,
493 U.S. 146 (1989) ................................................................................................................... 4
Larson v. Dep’t of State,
565 F.3d 857 (D.C. Cir. 2009) ................................................................................................... 5
Miscavige v. IRS,
2 F.3d 366 (11th Cir. 1993) ........................................................................................................ 4
Monahan v. New York City Dep’t of Corrections,
214 F.3d 275 (2d Cir. 2000) ....................................................................................................... 6
Montana v. United States,
440 U.S. 147 (1979) ................................................................................................................... 5
Nat’l Council of La Raza v. DOJ,
411 F.3d 350 (2d Cir. 2005) ........................................................................................... 9, 10, 13
ii

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New Hampshire v. Maine,
532 U.S. 742 (2001) ............................................................................................................... 5, 6
New York Times Co. v. DOJ,
806 F.3d 682 (2d Cir. 2015) ..................................................................................................... 12
NLRB v. Sears, Roebuck & Co.,
421 U.S. 132 (1975) ........................................................................................................... 10, 11
Primorac v. CIA,
277 F. Supp. 2d 117 (D.D.C. 2003) ........................................................................................... 7
Proctor v. LeClaire,
715 F3d 404 (2d Cir. 2013) ........................................................................................................ 6
Renegotiation Bd. v. Grumman Aircraft Eng’g Corp.,
421 U.S. 168 (1975) ................................................................................................................... 9
Richards v. Jefferson County,
517 U.S. 793 (1996) ................................................................................................................... 5
Taylor v. Sturgell,
553 U.S. 880 (2008) ............................................................................................................... 5, 6
Tigue v. DOJ,
312 F.3d 70 (2d Cir. 2002) ................................................................................................. 10, 11
Upjohn Co. v. United States,
449 U.S. 383 (1981) ........................................................................................................... 13, 16
Wilner v. NSA,
592 F.3d 60 (2d Cir. 2009) .............................................................................................. 5, 14, 15
Wolfe v. Froehlke,
358 F.Supp. 1318 (D.D.C. 1973) ............................................................................................... 7
World Publishing Co. v. DOJ,
672 F.3d 825 (10th Cir. 2012) .................................................................................................... 4

iii

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Statutes 
5 U.S.C. § 552(b) (1) .......................................................................................................... 2, 13, 14
5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(3) ........................................................................................................... 2, 13, 14
5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(5) ............................................................................................................... 1, 2, 9
5 U.S.C. § 552(b) .......................................................................................................................... 15
50 U.S.C. § 3024(i)(1) ............................................................................................................ 14, 15
Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a) ....................................................................................................................... 4

iv

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
PRELIMINARY STATEMENT .....................................................................................................1
BACKGROUND .............................................................................................................................2
A. PLAINTIFFS’ FOIA REQUEST .......................................................................................2
B. THE DOCUMENT AT ISSUE ..........................................................................................3
C. PRIOR LITIGATION INVOLVING THE DOCUMENT AT ISSUE ..............................3
ARGUMENT ...................................................................................................................................4
A. Legal Standards ..................................................................................................................4
B. This Action Is Barred by Res Judicata ...............................................................................5
C. The Document Was Properly Withheld Under the Applicable FOIA Exemptions ...........9
1. The Document Was Properly Withheld Under Exemption Five ..................................9
a.

The Deliberative Process Privilege Applies ..............................................10

b.

The Attorney-Client Privilege Applies ......................................................13

2. The Document Was Properly Withheld Under Exemptions One and Three .............14
3. No Information in the Document Is Reasonably Segregable .....................................16
CONCLUSION.....................................................................................................................16

v

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Defendant the Department of Justice (“DOJ” or the “Department”) respectfully submits
this memorandum of law in support of its motion for summary judgment.

PRELIMINARY STATEMENT
Plaintiffs the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation and the American Civil
Liberties Union (collectively, the “ACLU” or “Plaintiffs”) filed a Freedom of Information Act
(“FOIA”) request seeking a single legal memorandum written by DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel
(“OLC”) in response to a confidential request from a client Executive Branch agency. The
document is a privileged legal advice memorandum squarely protected by the deliberative
process and attorney-client privileges, and therefore was properly withheld because it is exempt
from public disclosure pursuant to FOIA Exemption Five, 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(5). The document
was also properly withheld pursuant to FOIA Exemptions One and Three, id. § 552(b)(1), (3),
because it is classified and protected from disclosure by statute.
Indeed, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia has already made those
precise determinations in an action involving the same parties after that court reviewed the
document at issue in camera. Elec. Privacy Info. Ctr. v. Dep’t of Justice, Nos. 06- 096, 06-214
(RCL), 2014 WL 1279280 (D.D.C. Mar. 31, 2014). Therefore, the doctrine of res judicata
applies, and no changed circumstances or new facts exist to militate against applying that
doctrine, barring Plaintiffs from seeking a second review in this Court. In short, the Court need
not revisit the decision reached by its sister court, but instead should grant summary judgment in
favor of DOJ.

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BACKGROUND
A. PLAINTIFFS’ FOIA REQUEST
On March 10, 2015, OLC received a request dated the same day from the ACLU, seeking
a single document. See Declaration of Paul P. Colborn, Special Counsel in the Office of Legal
Counsel of the United States Department of Justice (“Colborn Decl.”) ¶ 8, Exh. A, at 1 (“the
ACLU Request”). The document was described as follows:
The ACLU seeks disclosure of the legal opinion from the Justice Department’s Office of
Legal Counsel interpreting common commercial service agreements, as referenced in
Senator Wyden’s letter to Attorney General Holder, dated February 3, 2015.
Id., Exh. A, at 3.
By letter dated March 16, 2015 and transmitted by email on March 17, 2015, OLC
responded to the ACLU, acknowledging receipt of the ACLU Request and informing the ACLU
that the requested memorandum had been located. See id. ¶ 9, Exh. B, at 1. OLC further
informed the ACLU that the document was protected by the deliberative process and attorneyclient privileges, and that OLC accordingly was withholding the document pursuant to FOIA
Exemption Five, 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(5). Id. OLC also informed the ACLU that the document was
marked classified (and thus subject to Exemption One) and may also be exempt from disclosure
under FOIA Exemption Three, 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(1), (3). Id.
The ACLU appealed OLC’s withholding determination on May 14, 2015, to the
Department’s Office of Information Policy (“OIP”), the component charged with considering
such appeals. See id. ¶ 10, Exh. C. After the ACLU filed this lawsuit on November 17, 2015,
OIP informed the ACLU by letter dated December 7, 2015, that it would not make a
determination on the appeal in light of the pending litigation, pursuant to Department
regulations. See id., Exh. D.

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B. THE DOCUMENT AT ISSUE
The withheld document is a 19-page formal OLC legal advice memorandum to the
General Counsel of an Executive Branch agency, drafted at the request of that agency General
Counsel, dated March 30, 2003, and signed by OLC Deputy Assistant Attorney General John
Yoo. Colborn Decl. ¶ 12. The memorandum was written in response to confidential
communications from the Executive Branch client soliciting legal advice from OLC attorneys.
Id. As with all such OLC legal advice memoranda, the document contains confidential client
communications made for the purpose of seeking legal advice, as well as predecisional legal
advice from OLC attorneys transmitted to the Executive Branch client as part of the
government’s deliberative processes. Id. The identity of the recipient agency or agencies,
combined with the already public information regarding the document’s general subject matter,
is itself information protected by the attorney-client privilege and may not be disclosed on the
public record without waiving that privilege. Id. As explained in the classified declaration
submitted for the Court’s ex parte, in camera review,1 this information is also classified and
protected from disclosure by statute.
C. PRIOR LITIGATION INVOLVING THE DOCUMENT AT ISSUE
In March 2014, less than a year before OLC’s response to the ACLU Request, OLC’s
withholding of the same document from the ACLU in response to a different FOIA request was
upheld after in camera review of the document by the United States District Court for the
District of Columbia in the consolidated case Electronic Privacy Information Center v.
Department of Justice, Nos. 06- 096, 06-214 (RCL), 2014 WL 1279280 (D.D.C. Mar. 31, 2014)
(“EPIC”). Colborn Decl. ¶ 13, Exh. E (“Bradbury EPIC Declaration”). The document, which
The classified declaration is being lodged today with the Department’s Classified Information
Security Officer, Michael P. Macisso, who will make arrangements for its secure transmission to
the Court.
1

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was identified in that case as ODAG 42, see Bradbury EPIC Declaration ¶ 98, was one of ten
OLC opinions reviewed by the EPIC court in camera, see Order, ECF No. 67, No. 06-096 (filed
Oct. 31, 2008), and determined to be properly withheld from disclosure pursuant to FOIA
Exemptions One, Three, and Five, Colborn Decl. ¶ 13; see EPIC, 2014 WL 1279280, at *1 (“The
Court is now satisfied with the Department’s decisions to withhold these ten records under
Exemptions One and Three, since they are in fact properly classified, as well as Exemption Five
as each record contains confidential, pre-decisional legal advice protected by the deliberativeprocess and attorney-client communications privileges.”).
ARGUMENT
A.

Legal Standards
“Upon request, FOIA mandates disclosure of records held by a federal agency, unless the

documents fall within enumerated exemptions.” Department of the Interior v. Klamath Water
Users Protective Ass’n, 532 U.S. 1, 8 (2001) (citations omitted). Although these exemptions
“have been consistently given a narrow compass,” id. (quotation marks omitted), they are
“intended to have meaningful reach and application,” John Doe Agency v. John Doe Corp., 493
U.S. 146, 152 (1989). Through FOIA’s exemptions, Congress recognized that public disclosure
is not always in the public interest, and struck “a balance between the public’s right to know and
the government’s legitimate interest in keeping certain information confidential.” Associated
Press v. DOJ, 549 F.3d 62, 64 (2d Cir. 2008) (quoting Center for Nat’l Sec. Studies v. DOJ, 331
F.3d 918, 925 (D.C. Cir. 2003)) (internal quotation marks omitted).
Most FOIA actions are resolved by summary judgment. See Carney v. DOJ, 19 F.3d 807,
812 (2d Cir. 1994); World Publishing Co. v. DOJ, 672 F.3d 825, 832 (10th Cir. 2012); Miscavige
v. IRS, 2 F.3d 366, 369 (11th Cir. 1993). Summary judgment is warranted if “there is no genuine
dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed.
4

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R. Civ. P. 56(a). In a FOIA case, “[a]ffidavits or declarations supplying facts indicating that the
agency has conducted a thorough search and giving reasonably detailed explanations why any
withheld documents fall within an exemption are sufficient to sustain the agency’s burden.”
Carney, 19 F.3d at 812 (footnote omitted). An agency’s declarations in support of its
determination are “accorded a presumption of good faith.” Id. at 812, 814 (quotation marks
omitted). In national security matters, moreover, the government’s justifications for withholding
are entitled to “substantial weight.” Wilner v. NSA, 592 F.3d 60, 73 (2d Cir. 2009) (quoting
Larson v. Dep’t of State, 565 F.3d 857, 862 (D.C. Cir. 2009)); ACLU v. DOJ, 681 F.3d 61, 69
(2d Cir. 2012). Further, “an agency’s justification for invoking a FOIA exemption is sufficient if
it appears logical or plausible.” Wilner, 592 F.3d at 73.
B.

This Action Is Barred by Res Judicata
Two interrelated doctrines, claim and issue preclusion, which together are known as res

judicata, serve to preclude parties in cases, including those brought under FOIA, from
“contesting matters that they have had a full and fair opportunity to litigate,” and thereby
“protect against the expense and vexation attending multiple lawsuits, conserve judicial
resources, and . . . miminiz[e] the possibility of inconsistent judgments.” Taylor v. Sturgell, 553
U.S. 880, 892 (2008) (quoting Montana v. United States, 440 U.S. 147, 153-154 (1979)) (internal
quotation marks omitted).
“Under the doctrine of claim preclusion, a final judgment forecloses successive litigation of
the very same claim, whether or not relitigation of the claim raises the same issues as the earlier
suit.” Taylor, 553 U.S. at 892 (quoting New Hampshire v. Maine, 532 U.S. 742, 748 (2001))
(internal quotation marks omitted); see also Richards v. Jefferson County, 517 U.S. 793, 796
(1996) (holding that a prior judgment is generally res judicata as to all relevant issues which

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could have been but were not raised and litigated in the suit). The party asserting claim
preclusion must show that (1) the previous action involved an adjudication on the merits; (2) the
previous action involved the plaintiffs or those in privity with them; and (3) the claims asserted
in the subsequent action were, or could have been, raised in the prior action. Monahan v. New
York City Dep’t of Corrections, 214 F.3d 275, 285 (2d Cir. 2000).
“Issue preclusion, in contrast, bars successive litigation of an issue of fact or law actually
litigated and resolved in a valid court determination essential to the prior judgment, even if the
issue recurs in the context of a different claim.” Taylor, 553 U.S. at 893 (quoting New
Hampshire, 532 U.S. at 748-49) (internal quotation marks omitted). For there to be issue
preclusion, (1) the identical issue must be “raised in a previous proceeding,” (2) the issue must
be “actually litigated and decided in that previous proceeding,” (3) the party to be precluded
must have “had a full and fair opportunity to litigate the issue,” and (4) the resolution of the issue
must be “necessary to support a valid and final judgment on the merits.” Proctor v. LeClaire,
715 F.3d 404, 414 (2d Cir. 2013) (quoting Ball v. A.O. Smith Corp., 451 F.3d 66, 69 (2d Cir.
2006)).
In FOIA cases, claim and issue preclusion do not apply to claims based on facts not yet in
existence at the time of the original action or when changed circumstances alter the legal issues
involved. ACLU v. DOJ, 321 F. Supp. 2d 24, 34 (D.D.C. 2004). To avoid preclusion based on
facts not previously in existence, the FOIA requester must show that the facts directly and
materially impact the nature of records responsive to the FOIA request. See, e.g., Drake v. Fed.
Aviation Admin., 291 F.3d 59, 66 (D.C. Cir. 2002) (res judicata did not apply where subsequent
identical FOIA request now encompassed records that did not exist at the time the first FOIA
request was made); Croskey v. United States Office of Special Counsel, No. 96-5114, 1997 WL

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702364, at *3 (D.C. Cir. Oct. 17, 1997) (res judicata inapplicable because document was not in
existence when earlier litigation was brought). To establish changed circumstances, the FOIA
requester generally must show a change in the position of the agency receiving the FOIA request,
e.g., where the agency has changed its justification for withholding a document, or information
in the document has been declassified. See ACLU, 321 F. Supp. 2d at 34 (declassification of
information in a document is a changed circumstance that prevents applying res judicata); Wolfe
v. Froehlke, 358 F.Supp. 1318, 1319 (D.D.C. 1973) (lawsuit was not barred because the legal
issues in the case regarding the documents’ exemption from disclosure had changed), aff’d, 510
F.2d 654 (D.C. Cir. 1974); cf. Primorac v. CIA, 277 F. Supp. 2d 117, 120 (D.D.C. 2003)
(dismissing case on basis of res judicata despite plaintiff’s argument that automatic
declassification section of Executive Order 12,958 was unavailable to him in previous lawsuit for
same records, as the Executive Order was still unavailable because it was not yet effective).
The judgment in EPIC precludes the ACLU’s claim here. First, EPIC was an
adjudication on the merits that involved the district court’s reviewing in camera the same
document that is at issue in this litigation, and granting summary judgment to the government
after finding that the government had properly asserted Exemptions One, Three, and Five – the
same exemptions asserted here – to withhold the document. See Colborn Decl. ¶ 13; EPIC, 2014
WL 1279280, at *1. Second, the ACLU was a plaintiff in EPIC. Id. Finally, the claims asserted
in this action were, or could have been, asserted in EPIC. The FOIA claim at issue in EPIC
arose from a series of requests that effectively sought all OLC memoranda concerning
surveillance by Executive Branch agencies directed at communications to or from U.S. citizens.2

2

One of the FOIA requests at issue in EPIC sought “[a]ll memoranda, legal opinions, directives or instructions from
[DOJ departments] issued between September 11, 2001, and December 21, 2005, regarding the government’s legal
authority for surveillance activity, wiretapping, eavesdropping, and other signals intelligence operations directed at

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See id. Even if the ACLU did not know that this specific memorandum was included among the
documents reviewed in camera by the EPIC court, the ACLU had a full and fair opportunity to
make any and all arguments in seeking disclosure of that document. Indeed, in EPIC, the
government’s assertion of exemptions received the highest level of scrutiny available to a
plaintiff in FOIA litigation—the district court issued its decision after reviewing the document in
camera and determining that the government’s assertions of Exemptions One, Three, and Five
were proper. Colborn Decl. ¶ 13. The ACLU’s claim in this lawsuit is therefore barred by claim
preclusion.
Issue preclusion also bars this suit, for the same reasons. The issue of the applicability of
Exemptions One, Three, and Five to the document in question is precluded: the exact same issue
arose in EPIC, that issue was actually and necessarily decided in EPIC, and the ACLU, as a
party in EPIC, had a full and fair opportunity to litigate it. See id.
None of the exceptions to res judicata apply. The Government has not changed its
position regarding the document at issue – the document remains classified, statutorily protected,
and privileged, and the justifications for withholding remain the same. Accordingly, no changed
circumstances exist. See Colborn Decl. ¶¶ 23-24. Nor have any new facts come into existence
since the final decision in EPIC that are material to the requested document. Id.
The ACLU may argue that statements made by Senator Ron Wyden regarding the
document, including in letters to the Attorney General, constitute new facts or changed
circumstances. See Compl. ¶ 2 (“In letters sent to then–Attorney General Eric Holder, Senator
Wyden suggested that the executive branch has relied on the Opinion in the past and cautioned
that the OLC’s secret interpretation could be relied on in the future as a basis for policy.”). But

communications to or from U.S. citizens.” Elec. Privacy Information Ctr. v. Dep’t of Justice, 511 F. Supp. 2d 56,
63 (D.D.C. 2007).

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such statements do not constitute new facts or changed circumstances material to the ACLU’s
FOIA claim because they do not evince any change of the Executive Branch’s position vis-à-vis
the document or otherwise affect its status under FOIA. See Drake, 291 F.3d at 66; Am. Civil
Liberties Union, 321 F. Supp. 2d at 34. As the Senator is not an Executive Branch official, his
statements about the document do not reflect the policy or position of any Executive Branch
agency. See Brennan Center v. DOJ, 697 F.3d 184, 195, 206 (2d Cir. 2012); Nat’l Council of La
Raza v. DOJ, 411 F.3d 350, 356-59 (2d Cir. 2005); infra at 11-12. Senator Wyden’s statements
are simply not relevant to whether the document has been properly withheld under Exemptions
One, Three, and Five, and do not undermine the applicability of any of those exemptions.
Additionally, the Senator has made similar statements regarding the document at issue in letters
sent during at least the last four years. Compl. ¶ 2. Thus, the Senator’s statements regarding the
document are not new facts since they were available to Plaintiffs well before the district court
ruled in EPIC.
C.

The Document Was Properly Withheld Under the Applicable FOIA Exemptions
Even if the ACLU were not barred by the prior court decision from asserting that the

document was wrongfully withheld, the same result is required here. As the agency declarations
submitted in connection with this motion demonstrate, the document was properly withheld
under Exemption Five as protected by the deliberative process and attorney-client privileges, and
under Exemptions One and Three as properly classified and protected by the National Security
Act.
1.

The Document Was Properly Withheld Under Exemption Five
Exemption Five exempts from disclosure “inter-agency or intra-agency memorandums or

letters which would not be available by law to a party . . . in litigation with the agency.”
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5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(5). That language “incorporate[s] . . . all the normal civil discovery
privileges.” Hopkins v. HUD, 929 F.2d 81, 84 (2d Cir. 1991); accord Renegotiation Bd. v.
Grumman Aircraft Eng’g Corp., 421 U.S. 168, 184 (1975). “Stated simply, agency documents
which would not be obtainable by a private litigant in an action against the agency under normal
discovery rules (e.g., attorney-client, work-product, executive privilege) are protected from
disclosure under Exemption 5.” Tigue v. DOJ, 312 F.3d 70, 76 (2d Cir. 2002) (citation omitted).
a.

The Deliberative Process Privilege Applies

Exemption Five encompasses the “‘deliberative process’ or ‘executive’ privilege, which
protects the decisionmaking processes of the executive branch in order to safeguard the quality
and integrity of governmental decisions.” Hopkins, 929 F.2d at 84; accord Klamath, 532 U.S. at
8-9 (“officials will not communicate candidly among themselves if each remark is a potential
item of discovery and front page news”); NLRB v. Sears, Roebuck & Co., 421 U.S. 132, 150-51
(1975) (“those who expect public dissemination of their remarks may well temper candor with a
concern for appearances . . . to the detriment of the decision making process” (quotation marks
omitted)). Legal advice, like other advisory opinions, “fits exactly within the deliberative
process rationale for Exemption 5.” Brinton v. Department of State, 636 F.2d 600, 604 (D.C.
Cir. 1980); see La Raza, 411 F.3d at 356-57.
An agency record must satisfy two criteria to qualify for the deliberative process privilege:
it “must be both ‘predecisional’ and ‘deliberative.’” Grand Central P’ship, Inc. v. Cuomo, 166
F.3d 473, 482 (1999) (citations omitted); accord Tigue, 312 F.3d at 76–77. A document is
“predecisional” when it is “prepared in order to assist an agency decisionmaker in arriving at his
decision.” Grumman, 421 U.S. at 184 (quoted in Tigue, 312 F.3d at 80; Grand Central, 166 F.3d
at 482; Hopkins, 929 F.2d at 84). While a document is predecisional if it “precedes, in temporal

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sequence, the ‘decision’ to which it relates,” Grand Central, 166 F.3d at 482, the government
need not “identify a specific decision” made by the agency to establish the predecisional nature
of a particular record, Sears, 421 U.S. at 151 n.18; accord Tigue, 312 F.3d at 80. So long as the
document “was prepared to assist [agency] decisionmaking on a specific issue,” it is
predecisional. Tigue, 312 F.3d at 80.
“A document is ‘deliberative’ when it is actually related to the process by which policies
are formulated.” Grand Central, 166 F.3d at 482 (quotation marks and alteration omitted). In
determining whether a document is deliberative, courts inquire whether it “formed an important,
if not essential, link in [the agency’s] consultative process,” whether it reflects the opinions of
the author rather than the policy of the agency, and whether it might “reflect inaccurately upon or
prematurely disclose the views of [the agency].” Id. at 483; accord Hopkins, 929 F.2d at 84.
Predecisional deliberative documents include “recommendations, draft documents, proposals,
suggestions, and other subjective documents which reflect the personal opinions of the writer
rather than the policy of the agency.” Tigue, 312 F.3d at 80 (quotation marks omitted). The
privilege “focus[es] on documents ‘reflecting advisory opinions, recommendations and
deliberations comprising part of a process by which governmental decisions and policies are
formulated.’” Hopkins, 929 F.2d at 84-85 (quoting Sears, 421 U.S. at 150).
As the Colborn Declaration explains, the document at issue by its very nature is
predecisional and deliberative: as a legal advice memorandum, the document was prepared in
advance of Executive Branch decision-making and reflects advice by OLC to an Executive
Branch client agency in connection with that decision-making. Colborn Decl. ¶ 16. Disclosure
of the document would reveal the advice itself, as well as the solicitation of that advice by the
client agency, which are exactly the types of exchanges that are essential components of the

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government’s deliberative process. Id. Compelled disclosure of this or similar documents would
undermine the deliberative processes of the government and chill the candid and frank
communications necessary for effective governmental decision-making. Id. The deliberative
process privilege ensures that such candid and frank communications continue, that agencies
continue to seek DOJ’s advice, and that DOJ is able to provide candid, complete analysis to the
Executive Branch. Id. This is especially important with regard to OLC advice, as OLC is often
called upon to provide advice to the Executive Branch on particularly important, difficult and
often controversial legal questions. See id. ¶¶ 3-5. For all of these reasons, the document falls
squarely within the scope of the deliberative process privilege and Exemption 5. See, e.g., New
York Times Co. v. DOJ, 806 F.3d 682, 687 (2d Cir. 2015) (upholding DOJ’s withholding of
privileged OLC memoranda under Exemption Five); Elec. Frontier Found. v. DOJ, 739 F.3d 1,
10 (D.C. Cir. 2014) (same).
Moreover, there is no basis for any claim that the memorandum has lost the protections of
Exemption Five. As a confidential legal advice memorandum, the document is not agency
“working law.” See New York Times, 806 F.3d at 687; Brennan Ctr., 697 F.3d at 203; Elec.
Frontier Found., 739 F.3d at 10. Nor is there any evidence the memorandum has been expressly
adopted as agency policy or publicly disclosed. Colborn Decl. ¶¶ 23-24. Although the ACLU’s
complaint points to statements about the document by Senator Wyden, he is not an Executive
Branch official, and his statements cannot effect any adoption or waiver. Brennan Center, 697
F.3d at 206. The document therefore remains protected by the deliberative process privilege, and
it was properly withheld under Exemption 5.

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b.

The Attorney-Client Privilege Applies

Exemption Five also incorporates the attorney-client privilege. La Raza, 411 F.3d at 360;
In re Grand Jury Investigation, 399 F.3d 527, 533 (2d Cir. 2005). “The attorney-client privilege
protects confidential communications between client and counsel made for the purpose of obtaining or providing legal assistance. Its purpose is to encourage attorneys and their clients to communicate fully and frankly and thereby to promote ‘broader public interests in the observance of
law and administration of justice.’” In re Country of Erie, 473 F.3d 413, 418 (2d Cir. 2007)
(quoting Upjohn Co. v. United States, 449 U.S. 383, 389 (1981) (citation omitted)). It operates
in the government context as it does between private attorneys and their clients, “protect[ing]
most confidential communications between government counsel and their clients that are made
for the purpose of obtaining or providing legal assistance.” Id. “To invoke the attorney-client
privilege, a party must demonstrate that there was: (1) a communication between client and
counsel, which (2) was intended to be and was in fact kept confidential, and (3) made for the
purpose of obtaining or providing legal advice.” Id. at 419. A lawyer’s advice regarding how to
comply with or implement legal obligations is privileged as well. Id. at 422.
As the Colborn Declaration explains, the attorney-client privilege applies to the document
at issue here. See Colborn Decl. ¶ 18. The document is a confidential communication between
OLC and its Executive Branch agency client, consisting of legal advice incorporating
confidential information from that agency provided for the purpose of obtaining such legal
advice. Id. Its confidentiality has been maintained. Id. Compelled disclosure of the document
would reveal legal advice and client confidences, thereby undermining DOJ’s ability to provide
advice to its client agencies and those agencies’ willingness to seek that advice. Colborn Decl. ¶
18. Thus, OLC properly withheld the document pursuant to Exemption Five and the attorneyclient privilege.
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2.

The Document Was Properly Withheld Under Exemptions One and Three
The document is also classified and protected from disclosure by statute, and thus it was

properly withheld under Exemptions One and Three, 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(1),(3), in addition to
Exemption Five.
First, the document is currently and properly classified in its entirety, and is therefore
protected under FOIA Exemption One. Exemption One exempts from disclosure records that are
“specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive order to be kept secret in the
interest of national defense or foreign policy,” and “are in fact properly classified pursuant to
such Executive order.” 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(1). Pursuant to Executive Order 13,526, 75 Fed. Reg.
707 (Jan. 5, 2010), information is properly classified if (1) an original classifying authority
classified the information; (2) the information is owned by, produced by or for, or is under the
control of the United States Government; (3) the information “pertains to” one of eight
categories of information specified in the Executive Order, including “intelligence activities
(including covert action), sources and methods”; and (4) its “unauthorized disclosure could
reasonably be expected to cause identifiable or describable damage to the national security.”
Executive Order 13,526, § 1.4; see also id. § 1.1. The document at issue in this case satisfies all
of these criteria, as explained in detail in the classified declaration submitted for the Court’s
review ex parte and in camera.
Second, the document is protected from disclosure by FOIA Exemption Three in
conjunction with the National Security Act, 50 U.S.C. § 3024(i)(1). Exemption Three permits
the withholding of information that is “specifically exempted from disclosure by [a] statute” that
“leave[s] no discretion on the issue” or “establishes particular criteria for withholding.” 5 U.S.C.
§ 552(b)(3). Exemption Three “differs from other FOIA exemptions in that its applicability
depends less on the detailed factual contents of specific documents; the sole issue for decision is
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the existence of a relevant statute and the inclusion of the withheld material within the statute’s
coverage.” Wilner, 592 F.3d. at 52 (quoting Ass’n of Retired R.R. Workers v. U.S. R.R. Ret. Bd.,
830 F.2d 331, 336 (D.C. Cir. 1987)). The relevant withholding statute at issue in this case is the
National Security Act of 1947, as amended by the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention
Act of 2004. That statute mandates that the “Director of National Intelligence shall protect
intelligence sources and methods from unauthorized disclosure.” 50 U.S.C. § 3024(i)(1). Here,
as explained in the classified declaration submitted for ex parte, in camera review, disclosure of
the document would reveal intelligence sources and methods protected from disclosure by the
National Security Act and Exemption 3.
The justifications provided in the classified declaration are plainly logical and plausible,
and are entitled to substantial deference from the Court. ACLU v. DOJ, 681 F.3d at 69; Wilner,
592 F.3d at 73. Indeed, given “the uniquely executive purview of national security” and “the
relative competencies of the executive and judiciary,” courts “have consistently deferred to
executive affidavits predicting harm to the national security, and have found it unwise to
undertake searching judicial review.” Wilner, 592 F.3d at 76 (internal quotation marks omitted);
accord Halperin v. CIA, 629 F.2d 144, 148 (D.C. Cir. 1980); Fitzgibbon v. CIA, 911 F.2d 755,
766 (D.C. Cir. 1990). As the Second Circuit has instructed, it is “bad law and bad policy to
second-guess the predictive judgments made by the government’s intelligence agencies.” ACLU
v. DOJ, 681 F.3d at 70-71 (quoting Wilner, 592 F.3d at 76) (internal quotation marks omitted);
see also CIA v. Sims, 471 U.S. 159, 179 (1985) (intelligence officials must “be familiar with ‘the
whole picture’ as judges are not,” and their decisions “are worthy of great deference given the
magnitude of the national security interests and potential risks at stake”).

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3.

No Information in the Document Is Reasonably Segregable
Although FOIA provides that “[a]ny reasonably segregable portion of a record shall be

provided to any person requesting such record after deletion of the portions which are exempt
under this subsection,” 5 U.S.C. § 552(b), here the document at issue contains no reasonably
segregable non-exempt information. First, as an attorney-client communication, the attorneyclient privilege protects the document in full. Colborn Decl. ¶¶ 5-7, 18, 22; see Elec. Frontier
Found. 739 F.3d at 12 (factual material contained in an OLC memorandum, which was provided
to OLC so that it could provide legal advice, was protected from disclosure); see also Upjohn
Co., 449 U.S. at 390 (attorney-client privilege “exists to protect not only the giving of
professional advice to those who can act on it but also the giving of information to the lawyer to
enable him to give sound and informed advice”). Second, the government’s classified
declaration also explains that no nonexempt information can be reasonably segregated from the
information exempt from disclosure under Exemptions One, Three, and Five.
CONCLUSION
Based on the foregoing, the Court should grant summary judgment in favor of DOJ.
Dated: New York, New York
March 7, 2016
PREET BHARARA
United States Attorney for the
Southern District of New York
By:

/s/Arastu K. Chaudhury

_

ARASTU K. CHAUDHURY
Assistant United States Attorney
86 Chambers Street
New York, New York 10007
Telephone: 212-637-2633
Facsimile: 212-637-2750
arastu.chaudhury@usdoj.gov
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