Center for Constitutional Rights v. U.S. Department of State et al.

Background

Center for Constitutional Rights sued the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development under the Freedom of Information Act, a federal law that generally allows people to request records from federal agencies. The Government, representing both agency defendants, submitted a letter at the direction of the court and on behalf of all parties.

The parties explained that they were scheduled for an initial pretrial conference on November 21, 2025. They stated that this type of case is exempt from initial disclosures and the required meeting about discovery under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26. They also said they expected the matter to be resolved either by agreement or through motions for summary judgment, without discovery. The parties proposed continuing to discuss the records request and sending the court a joint progress report every 45 days.

Court’s Action

The court granted the application. It adjourned, or postponed without setting a new date, the initial pretrial conference previously scheduled for November 21, 2025. The parties were ordered to provide a joint status update about the case’s progress every 45 days. The first update letter is due January 5, 2026.

The clerk was directed to terminate the pending motion at docket entry 18. The opinion does not identify the nature of that motion. The court did not rule on the underlying records dispute, the Government’s responses, or any future summary-judgment motion.