Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, LITIGATION NEWS, TRENDS—SCOTUS scuttles discovery for now in lawsuit seeking DOGE records, (May 27, 2025)

By Brandi O. Brown, J.D.

The Supreme Court’s order comes just over a week after the district court ruled to allow discovery to go forward again.

At the end of last week, in the latest entry to a lawsuit stemming from the federal government’s refusal to comply with FOIA requests and records preservation demands made by the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), the U.S. Supreme Court, in a one sentence order signed by Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., ordered that two orders made by the district court below, on April 15, 2025, and May 20, 2025, were to be stayed “pending further order of the undersigned or of the Court.”

First discovery order. In the first of those two orders, issued on April 15, 2025, the district court, in response to a motion for expedited discovery made by CREW, had granted in part and denied in part the motion, with the court limiting CREW’s requests “to some extent” but ordering that the defendants serve responses and objections to CREW’s discovery requests within seven days of the order, produce all responsible documents within 14 days, and complete depositions within 10 days from the deadline for producing documents.

On May 14, 2025, a D.C. Circuit panel had dissolved an administrative stay it entered on April 18, 2025, and denied the federal government’s petition for a writ of mandamus in a dispute over discovery, allowing discovery, as ordered by the district court, to proceed.

Second order. Then, in the second of those two orders, issued on May 20, 2025, the district court again ordered discovery to proceed, consistent with the timelines included in its April 15 order. In that order, the district court prudently noted that “Should Defendants seek and obtain any stay from the Supreme Court,” it was ordered that they should “comply with the discovery schedule set forth above upon denial or dissolution of any stay issued by the Supreme Court without further order of this Court.”

Underlying lawsuit. In February, CREW filed suit against U.S. DOGE (USDS) and related federal officials accusing USDS of lack of transparency and seeking injunctive and declaratory relief that would require the defendants to comply with FOIA requests and Federal Records Act preservation requirements. They seek disclosure of records that reflect USDS’s organizational role, authorities, and operational reach.

The district court case is No. 1:25-cv-00511-CRC. The D.C. Circuit court case is No. 25-5130. The U.S. Supreme Court Docket is No. 24A1122.

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