United States Department of Justice v. Tax Analysts

United States Supreme Court

492 U.S. 136 (1989)

Relevant factsFree

The DOJ's Tax Division (defendant) routinely received copies of district court opinions and orders in the federal tax cases it litigated, and Tax Analysts (plaintiff), publisher of a tax-law newsletter, filed a FOIA request for the Division's recently received district court tax decisions, which DOJ denied on the ground the materials were not "agency records."

IssueFree

Whether FOIA requires the DOJ to make available copies of district court decisions it receives while litigating tax cases on the federal government's behalf.

Holding & reasoning

The court resolved the question by applying the controlling rule to the facts and explaining precisely why the outcome followed. Its reasoning ties the doctrine to the record so you can reproduce the analysis on an exam.

Procedural history, concurrence & dissent

This section traces the case from the trial court through appeal and lays out how each opinion lands. Separate writings sharpen the majority's limits and flag the arguments most likely to resurface in class.

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