Tinubu wins US Court ruling as Judge rejects Greenspan’s evidence request

A United States federal court has rejected a request by Aaron Greenspan to obtain evidence from President Bola Tinubu and DCI Group over alleged cyberattacks on his website, ruling that the proposed discovery was not sufficiently connected to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit before it.

The United States District Court for the District of Columbia, in a decision delivered on October 30, dismissed Greenspan’s application for limited discovery from Tinubu and DCI Group, stressing that the litigation must remain focused on the legal issues properly presented before the court.

The lawsuit involves a FOIA dispute with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

However, Greenspan had sought to introduce questions relating to alleged cyberattacks on his website and obtain evidence from Tinubu and DCI Group, an American public affairs and lobbying firm.

The court found that the proposed discovery was not sufficiently relevant to the underlying FOIA claims to justify granting the application.

The ruling was disclosed in a press statement issued in Washington, D.C., on Friday.

Reacting to the decision, attorney Christopher W. Carmichael said the ruling reinforced the principle that FOIA litigation could not be used to pursue discovery unrelated to the issues under judicial consideration.

“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,” Carmichael said.

In separate decisions, the court also rejected an application by nonparty Karl Von Batten seeking permission to submit an amicus curiae brief, commonly referred to as a friend-of-the-court submission.

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It equally denied Greenspan’s related request for judicial notice and his motion for summary judgment.

Attorney Oluwole Afolabi said the decisions established important procedural boundaries in the case, although the substantive FOIA dispute remained unresolved.

“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,” Afolabi said.

The latest decision does not determine the merits of Greenspan’s underlying FOIA claims against the FBI and DEA, but limits the scope of the discovery he sought to introduce in the proceedings.