Where to Turn
If your FOIA request and appeal has been denied, you can take various steps including going to court.
This website cannot give you legal advice and the creator recommends that if you’re thinking of filing a FOIA-related lawsuit that you call a lawyer specializing in access laws and First Amendment issues, such as a lawyer who represents media or public interest groups. You can find one by contacting your state’s bar association or contact the Media Law Resource Center.
However, before deciding to court, which is an expensive undertaking, consider the following options:
- Contact the federal Office of Government Information Services at the National Archives and Records Administration. The agency acts as the executive branch’s FOIA ombudsman and can act as a mediator between FOIA requestors and other agencies.
- See if your state has a freedom of information hotline or other service that offers advice for free. A number of journalism, media or public interest law firms, and other non-governmental organizations, such as the League of Women Voters or the American Civil Liberties Union, interested in access to government information offer this service. Some state officials, such as state's attorney general, auditor, or secretaries of states are involved in open government issues.
You won't know unless you ask.
This website cannot give you legal advice and the creator recommends that if you’re thinking of filing a FOIA-related lawsuit that you call a lawyer specializing in access laws and First Amendment issues, such as a lawyer who represents media or public interest groups. You can find one by contacting your state’s bar association or contact the Media Law Resource Center.
However, before deciding to court, which is an expensive undertaking, consider the following options:
- Contact the federal Office of Government Information Services at the National Archives and Records Administration. The agency acts as the executive branch’s FOIA ombudsman and can act as a mediator between FOIA requestors and other agencies.
- See if your state has a freedom of information hotline or other service that offers advice for free. A number of journalism, media or public interest law firms, and other non-governmental organizations, such as the League of Women Voters or the American Civil Liberties Union, interested in access to government information offer this service. Some state officials, such as state's attorney general, auditor, or secretaries of states are involved in open government issues.
You won't know unless you ask.
“Besides the obvious virtues of an open government, FOIA is particularly valuable to a nation founded on individual freedom and government accountability.”
-Honorable Orrin G. Hatch, U.S. Senator
(Feinberg et. al, 1986, p 610).
(Feinberg et. al, 1986, p 610).