The Supreme Court will decide whether a left-leaning advocacy group can obtain discovery from President Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) before any court has determined whether the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) applies to it. U.S. DOGE Service v. U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia stems from a FOIA request for records about DOGE, which was created to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government.
The Trump administration argued DOGE advises the president as part of his office and falls outside FOIA. A district judge disagreed and allowed a deposition of its administrator. In June 2025, the Supreme Court paused that order 6-3, finding the discovery not appropriately tailored and noting that separation of powers concerns counsel judicial deference and restraint in discovery into internal executive communications.
After the advocacy group narrowed its request, the D.C. Circuit sided with the group. The administration now asks whether that ruling departed from the Court’s instructions and from Cheney v. United States District Court, and whether courts may order broad discovery against a presidential advisory body just to decide if FOIA applies.
The case is expected to be heard by the Supreme Court this Term.
