Federal FOIA Does Not Authorize Lawsuits Against Individual Government Employees and more...

A federal circuit court of appeals ruled in favor of a government agency in a lawsuit challenging the agency's response to a request under FOIA for certain government records. Henson v. Department of Health and Human Services (7th Cir. June 15, 2018).

First, the court held that the federal FOIA does not provide a cause of action against individual employees of the agency. The court noted that the federal FOIA gives jurisdiction to the courts to order the agency to produce agency records, and an individual employee is not an "agency" defined by the statute. Second, the court found that the agency had conducted an adequate and reasonable search of its records, and established that it made a good faith effort to conduct a search for the requested records. Finally, the court determined that the agency properly withheld or redacted documents under the statute's exemptions. 

      

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The issue of gun control has been a topic of extensive conversation across the country, and recently in Illinois when the Village of Deerfield enacted an assault weapons ban by local ordinance. That ban is currently the subject of a legal challenge in multiple lawsuits, including one brought by the Illinois State Rifle Association and the Second Amendment Foundation, and another lawsuit filed by Guns Save Life, Inc. Both cases claim the Village had no authority to adopt its assault weapons ban because it was preempted by state law. Other arguments include "takings" and eminent domain claims and both complaints ask the court to issue a temporary restraining order (TRO) to prohibit the Village from enforcing the ban while the case moves forward.

On June 12th, a Lake County Circuit Court judge issued a preliminary ruling in both cases granting a TRO to plaintiffs and barring the Village from enforcing its assault weapons ban. The court determined that the Village ordinance was not enforceable because it is preempted by state law, specifically provisions of the Firearm Owner's Identification Card Act and Firearm Concealed Carry Act that were enacted in 2013. The court also found that the Village's 2018 ordinance that amended a 2013 ordinance adopted by the Village within the limited preemption exclusion time-frame was a "new" ordinance and not an amendment of the 2013 ordinance. The court rejected plaintiffs' takings and eminent domain claims. 

This ruling is not the final decision in this case, but grants temporary relief to plaintiffs while the case proceeds.

You can read the court's ruling here.

      

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Illinois House Bill 4711, if passed, proposes to amend the Zoning Enabling Acts for municipalities, counties, and townships to address lawsuits against these government entities. That bill recently passed both houses and has been sent to the Governor.

If passed, the zoning statutes will be amended to provide that the statute commonly referred to as the Adjoining Landowner Act does not authorize a lawsuit against the municipality, county, or township in which the property in question is located unless the government entity is the owner of that property. The Adjoining Landowner Act authorizes a municipality or property owners within 1200 feet of a property allegedly in violation of buildings or zoning codes to sue the property owner to enforce the building or zoning code. 

The specific language that would be added to the municipal Adjoining Landowner Act is as follows:

The bill is consistent with numerous Illinois cases that have dismissed lawsuits filed against government entities under the Adjoining Landowner Act. Those cases clearly state that the Adjoining Landowner Act does not provide a cause of action against the government entity unless the entity is the owner of the property that is allegedly in violation of building or zoning codes.

Post Authored by Julie Tappendorf

      

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The Illinois Supreme Court granted an appeal in a case challenging the City of Chicago's food truck ordinance.  We wrote about the appellate court ruling here and the trial court ruling here.  Both courts ruled in favor of the City of Chicago, rejecting the plaintiffs' claim that the ordinance violated the food truck operators' equal protection rights because it treated food trucks differently than restaurants. It also rejected their argument that the 200 foot distance requirement from brick and mortar restaurants violated the food truck operators' due process rights, finding no protected property right to operate a food truck.  We will update you once the Illinois Supreme Court issues its ruling in this appeal.

      

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