FOIA Bootcamp 2026: Drafting Requests, Negotiating with Agencies, and Litigating Claims скачать в хорошем качестве

FOIA Bootcamp 2026: Drafting Requests, Negotiating with Agencies, and Litigating Claims

Tuesday, February 24th, 2026 Panelists: Joshua Eaton — Hearst Connecticut Media Group Investigative Reporter Sarah Normand — Former Assistant U.S. Attorney The federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and its state equivalents hold the government accountable to the governed by opening agency records to public inspection. Yet getting your hands on the right records isn’t always easy. Yale's FOIA Bootcamp aims to help journalists, activists, and citizens learn how to draft requests, negotiate with agencies, and litigate claims. Investigative reporter Joshua Eaton and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Normand will share their insights on using FOIA as a tool for investigative work and government accountability. The discussion will cover when to file a request, how to draft it effectively, dealing with FOIA officers, and making the system work. Joshua Eaton is an investigative reporter at Hearst Connecticut Media Group. Before joining Hearst, he was on investigative and enterprise teams at NBC News, CQ Roll Call and ThinkProgress. He holds a master of divinity from Harvard and a bachelor’s degree in psychology. Eaton has contributed to investigative teams at CQ Roll Call, ThinkProgress, and the New England Center for Investigative Reporting. His reporting has been cited in a Supreme Court confirmation hearing and a federal voting rights lawsuit. His work has also appeared at The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, The New Republic, Kaiser Health News, Al Jazeera America, The Intercept, and elsewhere. Sarah S. Normand has spent more than 25 years litigating and supervising FOIA cases on behalf of a wide range of federal agencies. Normand served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York from 1999–2025. She served as deputy and chief appellate attorney (2004–2013) and then deputy chief of the SDNY Civil Division (2013–2025). In these roles, Normand developed particular expertise in FOIA and other litigation involving sensitive government information. She briefed and argued dozens of cases, in both district court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, and served as the principal supervisor and liaison for FOIA cases filed in the SDNY. In recognition of her work in this area, Normand was awarded the Attorney General’s Award for Outstanding Service in FOIA Administration in 2023. Prior to joining the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Normand served as a law clerk to the Honorable Sonia Sotomayor, then a judge on the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals. Normand graduated from Georgetown University Law Center, magna cum laude, in 1995. She is currently an adjunct professor at Fordham School of Law. The bootcamp will be moderated by Stacy Livingston, a clinical lecturer in law at Yale Law School.