Supreme Court of the United States · Official docket →
James G. Connell, III v. Central Intelligence Agency
Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, No. 23-5118 · judgment August 6, 2024
Before the decision, well below the 4.1% base rate, with no standout signals pointing toward a grant.
Question presented
When a federal agency responds to a request for records under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552, it may assert a “Glomar response,” neither confirming nor denying the existence of responsive records, on the theory that even a mere acknowledgment that the records do or do not exist is itself exempt from disclosure under one of the statute’s narrow exemptions. The question presented is whether, in assessing the legality of a Glomar response, a court may weigh any relevant evidence bearing on the existence of responsive records, as the Second Circuit has held, or may only look to evidence that the responding agency has waived protection over the existence of records through its own official acknowledgment, as the D.C. Circuit held in the decision below.
Counsel of record
For petitioner
Brett Max Kaufman
American Civil Liberties Union Foundation
For respondent
D. John Sauer
Solicitor General
Case
Conference history
Distributed for 1 conference
Proceedings
- Jun 30 2025Petition DENIED. Justice Gorsuch took no part in the consideration or decision of this petition.
- Jun 10 2025DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 6/26/2025.
- Jun 06 2025Reply of petitioner James G. Connell, III filed. (Distributed)
- May 21 2025Brief of respondent Central Intelligence Agency in opposition filed.
- Apr 03 2025Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including May 21, 2025.
- Apr 02 2025Motion to extend the time to file a response from April 10, 2025 to May 21, 2025, submitted to The Clerk.
- Feb 24 2025Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including April 10, 2025.
- Feb 21 2025Motion to extend the time to file a response from February 28, 2025 to April 10, 2025, submitted to The Clerk.
- Dec 20 2024Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including February 28, 2025.
- Dec 19 2024Motion to extend the time to file a response from January 2, 2025 to February 28, 2025, submitted to The Clerk.
- Dec 16 2024Motion of CIA for an extension of time not accepted for filing. (December 17, 2024 - rejected at filer's request)
- Nov 15 2024Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including January 2, 2025.
- Nov 13 2024Motion to extend the time to file a response from December 6, 2024 to January 2, 2025, submitted to The Clerk.
- Nov 04 2024Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due December 6, 2024)