Opinion ID: 71499
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 11

Heading: Exemption 5Deliberative Process Privilege

Text: The Sheldon declaration asserts that the Agent's Working Papers are exempt under FOIA exemption 5 as pre-decisional and part of the deliberative process. The information includes the revenue agent's development and analysis obtained during the course of their examination of plaintiffs [sic], as well as their opinions and recommendations as to the direction of the examination and a possible criminal referral. Exemption 5 states that an agency may withhold inter-agency or intra-agency memorandums or letters which would not be available by law to a party other than an agency in litigation with the agency. § 552(b)(5). Courts have interpreted this provision to cover materials that reflect the personal opinions of the writer rather than the policy of the agency, Morley v. CIA, 508 F.3d 1108, 1127 (D.C.Cir.2007) (quotation marks and citation omitted), but not [f]actual material that does not reveal the deliberative process, id. (quotation marks and citation omitted). We agree that the revenue agents' development and analysis ... as well as their opinions and recommendations as to the direction of the examination and a possible criminal referral are exempt as part of the deliberative process under Exemption 5. Batton asserts that, while this information may be exempt, factual information contained within the documents is not and the IRS must redact the exempt material to disclose any pertinent factual information. We have no factual findings to review as to whether the Agent's Working Papers include factual information as Batton asserts and, if so, whether that information is segregable. The Sheldon declaration does describe the Agent's Working Papers as including the facts or information gathered. Accordingly, a factual dispute exists about the content of the Agent's Working Papers. Because the factual content of the documents is unclear, the applicability of the exemption cannot be assessed and the court must remand the case for the agency to provide at least the minimal information necessary to make a determination. Morley, 508 F.3d at 1127 (quotation marks and citation omitted).