D.C. Federal Judge Issues Opinion in Long-Running NACDL Records Fight With Bureau of Prisons

D.C. Federal Judge Issues Opinion in Long-Running NACDL Records Fight With Bureau of Prisons

Judge Jia M. Cobb of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a memorandum opinion and order on November 20, 2025, in the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers' case against the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a dispute that has been pending since 2018. The order addresses a request by NACDL, though the excerpt provided does not disclose the specific relief granted or denied.

The case, docketed as Civil Action No. 18-cv-2399 (JMC), dates to 2018 and names the Bureau of Prisons and other defendants. The CourtListener record shows no citations to the opinion yet, and the available excerpt cuts off at the point where NACDL's request is described. Attorneys should consult the full memorandum opinion and order before drawing conclusions about the court's reasoning or the scope of any relief.

For practitioners, the dispatch is a reminder that litigation against BOP over access to information can stretch across years. NACDL is a national membership organization for criminal defense lawyers, and its posture as plaintiff here signals that the dispute concerns what the defense bar can obtain from the agency. The excerpt does not specify whether the underlying request arose under the Freedom of Information Act or another authority, so that detail should be confirmed from the opinion itself.

Attorneys following BOP transparency issues, or handling their own records disputes with the agency, should pull the full opinion from the CourtListener record to see how Judge Cobb resolved NACDL's request and what, if anything, the order requires of the government. Given the case's age, the November 20 order may also signal next steps in a matter that has already spanned several years.

Primary sources: CourtListener opinion record