Case 1:20-cv-00172-RC Document 28 Filed 04/03/20 Page 1 of 3

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

THE PROTECT DEMOCRACY
PROJECT, INC.,
Plaintiff,
Case No. 20-cv-172-RC
v.
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, et al.,
Defendants.

JOINT STATUS REPORT
Pursuant to the Court’s Minute Order dated March 26, 2020, Plaintiff The Protect
Democracy Project, Inc. and Defendants U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”), U.S. Department of
Defense (“DOD”) and U.S. Department of State (“State”) hereby submit the following status
report.
1.

Since the parties filed their last status report on March 19, 2020, they have

continued to engage in productive discussions regarding potential narrowing and prioritization of
Plaintiff’s FOIA request, as well as a reasonable timetable for processing documents.
2.

In the parties’ last status report, the Office of Legal Counsel (“OLC”) committed

to processing the OLC memorandum by April 6, 2020. Defendants have notified Plaintiff that the
OLC memorandum is currently going through the publication review process, which includes
securing waivers of any privilege from the relevant stakeholders. OLC expects that process to be
complete by the end of April. To avoid litigation over any withholding, Plaintiff has informed
Defendants that it will not insist on OLC processing the memorandum at issue by April 6, 2020,
and will instead wait for the publication determination. In the event that publication is delayed or

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 Case 1:20-cv-00172-RC Document 28 Filed 04/03/20 Page 2 of 3

OLC determines that it will not publish the memorandum, Plaintiff reserves its right to seek a court
order for immediate processing of the memorandum.
3.

DOD’s searches have located six unclassified responsive documents all of which

are out for review with other components/agencies. DOD expects that review process to be
complete by the end of April, after which DOD will produce any non-exempt portions of the six
unclassified documents to Plaintiff.
4.

Given the current pandemic and its effects on FOIA processing, none of the

agencies are in a position to propose a processing schedule. The parties will continue to confer
about Plaintiff’s FOIA request and a reasonable processing timetable.
5.

The parties propose filing another status report with the Court by May 29, 2020.

Dated: April 3, 2020

Respectfully submitted,
THE PROTECT DEMOCRACY PROJECT, INC.
By: /s/ Anne Tindall
Anne H. Tindall
The Protect Democracy Project, Inc.
2020 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, #163
Washington, DC 20006
T: (202) 579-4582   F: (929) 777-8428
anne.tindall@protectdemocracy.org
Benjamin L. Berwick
The Protect Democracy Project, Inc.
15 Main Street, Suite 312
Watertown, MA 02472
T: (202) 579-4582   F: (929) 777-8428
ben.berwick@protectdemocracy.org
John Paredes (pro hac vice)
The Protect Democracy Project, Inc.
115 Broadway, 5th Floor
New York, NY 10006
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 Case 1:20-cv-00172-RC Document 28 Filed 04/03/20 Page 3 of 3

T: (202) 579-4582   F: (929) 777-8428
john.paredes@protectdemocracy.org
Counsel for Plaintiff
JOSEPH H. HUNT
Assistant Attorney General
ELIZABETH J. SHAPIRO
Deputy Director, Federal Programs Branch
/s/ Kari D’Ottavio
KARI E. D’OTTAVIO
NY Bar Reg. No. 5338785
Trial Attorney
U.S. Department of Justice
Civil Division, Federal Programs Branch
1100 L Street NW
Washington, D.C. 20005
Tel: (202) 305-0568
Fax: (202) 616-8470
kari.e.d’ottavio@usdoj.gov
Counsel for Defendants

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