President Donald Trump speaks with reporters before departing on Marine One from the South Lawn of the White House, Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, in Washington (AP Photo/Alex Brandon).
A prominent advocacy group championing the First Amendment has taken legal action against the Trump administration, aiming to compel the release of information concerning agreements made with certain law firms deemed “targeted.” This lawsuit underscores the ongoing tension between the administration and transparency advocates.
The Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University has filed a lawsuit spanning 14 pages, demanding adherence to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). This legislation ensures the public’s right to access records from federal agencies—an essential facet of government accountability and transparency.
The institute originally submitted a FOIA request in May, anticipating a response within the statutory 20 business-day period. However, instead of gaining access to the requested documents, the Knight Institute encountered significant delays. The Office of Information Policy attributed the hold-up to “unusual circumstances,” failing to provide a clear timeline for a response.
The Knight First Amendment Institute argues that such delays defy the very purpose of the FOIA, which is to promote transparency. The lawsuit articulates that the extensive delay, sometimes stretching up to two years without resolution, effectively constitutes a denial of their request. Furthermore, the institute claims that the administration’s refusal to waive fees associated with searching, reviewing, and duplicating the requested records is a breach of the FOIA mandate.
Highlighting their motivation for pursuing these records, the Knight Institute paints a critical picture of President Donald Trump’s early tenure. The organization suggests that examining these agreements is crucial to understanding the administration’s approach to legal dealings and transparency.
To explain why they are seeking the records, the pro-First Amendment group recounted the first months of the current administration — and the account is not kind to President Donald Trump.
“Since January 2025, President Donald Trump has undertaken an unprecedented campaign to punish law firms whose clients, causes, or personnel he disfavors. Through a series of executive orders and presidential memoranda, the Trump Administration has directed federal agencies to target individual firms, including by scrutinizing their internal employment policies,” the filing reads.
The filing maintains that less than three months into the new federal government, at least nine law firms “under pressure” from the president “capitulated by striking agreements with the Trump Administration” largely by reducing or eradicating programs concerning diversity, equity, and inclusion practices.
“Despite the significance of these agreements to public understanding of the Trump Administration’s efforts to punish its political opponents, the agreements are not public,” the lawsuit reads.
The Knight First Amendment Institute referred to these law firms as “targeted” ones. It wants the administration to be required to “conduct a thorough search” for the relevant records and have the Southern District of New York court “[d]eclare that Defendants have violated FOIA by improperly withholding the Requested Documents” and order them to be released.
The nonprofit organization has taken aim at Trump before.
In July, they reminded U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon that three months had passed since they urged her to lift an injunction blocking the release of then-special counsel Jack Smith’s full report on the Mar-a-Lago classified documents probe and erstwhile Espionage Act prosecution of Trump.
Several months before that, the Knight Center urged a federal court to add The Associated Press back into the select group of journalists who make up the White House “press pool” against the wishes of the administration.
