The United States District Court for the District of Columbia has rejected a motion by Aaron Greenspan seeking limited discovery from Nigerian President Bola Tinubu and DCI Group in an ongoing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit.
In its ruling on 30 October, the court held that the proposed discovery concerning alleged cyberattacks on Greenspan’s website was not sufficiently relevant to the underlying dispute involving the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Reacting to the decision, attorney Christopher W. Carmichael said the ruling reinforced the need to keep the FOIA proceedings focused on the legal issues before the court.
“The Court’s decision makes clear that this Freedom of Information Act proceeding cannot be used to pursue discovery unrelated to the legal questions before it,” Carmichael said.
“By denying the request for discovery against President Tinubu and DCI Group, the Court reinforced the importance of keeping this litigation focused on the issues properly before it.”
The court also rejected a separate application by non-party Karl Von Batten seeking permission to submit an amicus curiae, or friend-of-the-court, brief.
Greenspan’s related request for judicial notice was also denied, alongside his motion for summary judgment.
Attorney Oluwole Afolabi described the decisions as procedural rulings that clarified the issues the court could consider in the case.
“The Court also denied the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment and rejected a separate request to introduce an amicus brief,” Afolabi said.
“While the underlying FOIA issues remain before the Court, these rulings establish important procedural boundaries and clarify which matters are appropriate for consideration in this litigation.”
