The OLC's Opinions
Opinions published by the OLC, including those released in response to our FOIA lawsuit
This Reading Room is a comprehensive database of published opinions written by the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC). It contains the approximately 1,400 opinions published by the OLC in its online database and the opinions produced in Freedom of Information Act litigation brought by the Knight Institute, including opinions about the Pentagon Papers, the Civil Rights Era, and the War Powers Act. It also contains indexes of unclassified OLC opinions written between 1945 and February 15, 1994 (these indexes were created by the OLC and intended to be comprehensive). We have compiled those indexes into a single list here and in .csv format here. This Reading Room also contains an index of all classified OLC opinions issued between 1974 and 2021, except those classified or codeword-classified at a level higher than Top Secret (the OLC created this index, too, and intended it to be comprehensive).
The Knight Institute will continue updating the reading room with new records. To get alerts when the OLC publishes a new opinion in its database, follow @OLCforthepeople on Twitter.
Showing 1151–1160 of 2202
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Availability of agency funds to pay attorney's fee awards under the Equal Access to Justice Act ("Act").
7/27/2020
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Applicability of the Federal Advisory Committee Act to Law Enforcement Coordinating Committees
If the functions of Law Enforcement Coordinating Committees (LECCs) are limited to the exchange of information, or to making operational decisions involving law enforcement matters, they will not be covered by the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA). However, to the extent that a LECC performs "advisory functions" by giving advice and recommendations to federal officials, it would be subject to the FACA's requirements when performing those functions. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/22766/download.
9/10/1981
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Extension of District Court Jurisdiction Under § 1110 of the Federal Aviation Act
Section 1110 of the Federal Aviation Act authorizes the President to extend that Act to areas outside the United States, but does not authorize an analogous extension of the geographic jurisdiction of a district court for purposes of enforcing certain of the Act's provisions. An executive order extending the Act to the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI) would make its provisions part of the law of the TTPI, and enforceable through the TTPI judicial system. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/22756/download.
8/27/1981
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Procedures for Implementing the Reciprocity Provisions of the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920
While the Department of Interior has no legal obligation to adopt substantive, prospective standards for applying the "reciprocity" provision of 30 U.S.C. § 181, if it chooses to do so it should comply with the public, notice-and-comment procedures applicable to agency rulemaking under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). If the Department of the Interior instead continues to determine on a country-by-country basis whether another country's laws and regulations accord American investors "similar or like privileges," APA procedures would not be considered applicable to such decisionmaking. However, an adequate record for judicial review of the substance of the ultimate decision should be made. As previously concluded, the Secretary of the Interior has authority under the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920 to "mirror" restrictive practices of another country. The question whether the Secretary is required to do so, or whether he could choose to take some more extreme action such as barring any investment by the other country's citizens, is not addressed. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/22761/download.
8/27/1981
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Definition of "Refugee" Under the Refugee Act of 1980
7/27/2020
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Arrest of Special Agents or Informers During Undercover Assignment
7/27/2020
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Use of FBI Laboratory by Foreign Governments
7/27/2020
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Constitutionality of Legislation Authorizing Permanent Resident Status for Certain Nonimmigrant Aliens
Legislation which would grant permanent residence status to certain nonimmigrant alien workers residing in the Virgin Islands, and at the same time restrict these individuals' ability to obtain the entry of relatives under otherwise applicable provisions of the Immigrant and Nationality Act, does not violate the Equal Protection Clause. The application of the equal protection principle to aliens is subject to the special powers of Congress over immigration and naturalization, and even the constitutional rights of citizens must yield where they clash with the paramount power of Congress over the admission and exclusion of aliens. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/22751/download.
8/24/1981
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Disclosure of Information Collected Under the Export Administration Act
Information collected under the Export Administration Act which is authorized to be made available to other federal agencies under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 may be released by the Department of Commerce to federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies without a prior determination that it would serve the national interest to do so. Section 12(c) of the Export Administration Act was not intended to prohibit disclosure to other federal agencies, but merely prohibits disclosure of certain confidential trade information to the public. Confidential information obtained pursuant to the Export Administration Act which is not covered by the Paperwork Reduction Act, and is exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, may be released to federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies notwithstanding the prohibition in 18 U.S.C. § 1905, if the Secretary of Commerce determines under § 12(c) of the Export Administration Act that failure to make such disclosure would be contrary to the national interest. In the exercise of his discretion under § 12(c), the Secretary of Commerce is subject to the review and direction of the President, and the President thus has the power, which he has previously exercised, to direct the Secretary to make a determination and authorize release of information. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/22741/download.
8/24/1981
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Status of Persons Who Emigrate for Economic Reasons Under the Refugee Act of 1980
Under the Refugee Act of 1980, a "refugee" is defined as a victim of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion; economic hardship by itself is not a basis for eligibility as a refugee under the Act. Refugee status under the Refugee Act of 1980 should normally be considered on an individual basis. While the Immigration and Naturalization Service may apply commonly known circumstances to people falling within particular groups without requiring the facts necessary to determine eligiblity to be proved individually in each and every case, group determinations should generally be reserved for situations in which the need to provide assistance is extremely urgent and political reasons preclude an individual determination of status. Fear of prosecution for departing a country in violation of its travel laws is not sufficient to entitle an individual to refugee status, unless it can be shown that such prosecution would be motivated by one o f the proscribed reasons. If the country treats departure as a political act and punishes that act in a harsh and oppressive manner, such circumstances would qualify as "persecution on account of . . . political opinion" under the Act. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/22746/download.
8/24/1981