The OLC
Astrid Da Silva

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).

Some opinion descriptions were drafted by the OLC, some were prepared by Knight First Amendment Institute staff, and some were generated using AI tools.

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 1241–1250 of 2214

  • Use of funds under Home Energy Assistance Act of 1980 for payments to public housing authorities.

    The document is a memorandum from the United States Department of Justice regarding the use of funds under the Home Energy Assistance Act of 1980 for payments to public housing authorities. The conclusion reached in the document is that the Act appears to impose a requirement that public housing projects be funded in state plans. The questions presented for review include whether states can be required to dispense funds received from the federal government under the Act to public housing projects to reduce fuel costs, and whether the exceptions imposed as a matter of administrative discretion by the Secretary should be permitted to defeat one of the clear purposes of the Act.

    7/27/2020

  • Whether adjustments made under the Cuban Refugee Adjustment Act (the "Act"), 8 U.S.C. § 1255 note, must be counted against the numerical limitations of visas issued under the Immigration and Nationality Act. 8 U.S.C. § 1151(a)

    The document is a response to a request for an opinion on whether adjustments made under the Cuban Refugee Adjustment Act must be counted against the numerical limitations of visas issued under the Immigration and Nationality Act. The conclusion reached in the document is that adjustments made under the Act should not be counted against the numerical limitation on visas. The document presents the question of whether adjustments made under the Cuban Refugee Adjustment Act should be included in the numerical limitations of visas issued under the Immigration and Nationality Act for review.

    7/27/2020

  • Use of Technical Advisers by Board of Contract Appeals

    A governmental decisionmaking body, including an agency board of contract appeals, may employ technical advisers to analyze and make recommendations on the technical aspects of evidence. Where a decisionmaker properly uses technical advisers, their reports and recommendations need not be disclosed to the parties to the proceedings; however, where the advice of technical advisers adds new facts to the record or constitutes evidence in itself, a court may require that it be disclosed. 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/22591/download.

    2/27/1981

  • Proposed Revocation by the Immigration and Naturalization Service of Certain Travel Restrictions on Permanent Resident Aliens (8 C.F.R. § 211.1(b))

    The document is a memorandum discussing the revocation of travel restrictions on permanent resident aliens who traveled to Iran. The conclusion reached is that President Carter's revocation of the prohibitions contained in E.O. 12211 removed the legal basis for Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) regulations issued pursuant to that Order. The document presents questions for review regarding whether INS should revoke its amendments to 8 C.F.R. § 211.1(b) which restrict the re-entry of permanent resident aliens who travel to Iran, and whether the revocation of the travel restrictions was intended by President Carter.

    10/27/2020

  • Ownership of agricultural ranching interests by Department of Agriculture employees.

    The document is a memorandum addressing the issue of Department of Agriculture employees owning agricultural or ranching interests. It clarifies that owning such interests does not automatically disqualify individuals from federal positions, but rather conflict-of-interest questions are to be resolved on a case-by-case basis. The conclusion reached is that ownership of agricultural or ranching interests is not a bar to service in the Department of Agriculture, and any potential conflicts of interest are to be addressed as they arise. The document also presents the relevant statute, 18 U.S.C. 208(a), which outlines the prohibition of employees participating in matters in which they have a financial interest. The questions presented for review include whether owning agricultural or ranching interests affects an individual's eligibility for a federal position and how conflict-of-interest issues should be handled in such cases.

    7/27/2020

  • Questions about the role of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's attorneys in the field (Principal Legal Advisors) and at headquarters in the Legal Counsel Division.

    The document is a memorandum responding to an inquiry about the role of FBI attorneys in field offices and at headquarters. The conclusion reached is that the federal government is the client of FBI attorneys, not the government's employees. The document also presents questions about the attorney-client relationship, the responsibilities of FBI attorneys, and the circumstances under which FBI employees can be represented by attorneys from the Civil Division. The memorandum emphasizes the need for FBI attorneys and employees to respect the confidences and secrets of the client, which is the FBI. It also discusses the decision-making authority for disclosing information and waiving the attorney-client privilege.

    7/27/2020

  • Proposed Executive Order Entitled "Federal Regulation"

    The following memorandum, prepared by the Office of Legal Counsel pursuant to its responsibility under Executive Order No. 11,030 for approving all executive orders and presidential proclamations for form and legality, analyzes the provisions of a proposed executive order imposing certain procedural and substantive requirements on executive agencies in connection with their rulemaking functions. It concludes that the order's provisions for presidential oversight of the administrative process are generally within the President's constitutional authority, and that they do not displace functions vested by law in particular agencies. It also concludes that the order's requirement that agencies reconsider final rules which have not yet become effective may in certain circumstances trigger the notice and comment provisions of the Administrative Procedure 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/22586/download.

    2/13/1981

  • Execution of Warrants and Subpoenas by United States Marshals

    The document is a memorandum discussing the authorization of United States Marshals to execute military warrants and subpoenas. The conclusion reached is that the Marshals are indeed authorized to execute process issued in a court-martial under 10 U.S.C. § 846. The document also presents questions for review, including the role of U.S. Marshals as officers of the United States District Courts and United States Courts of Appeals, and the burden of serving attachment warrants. It suggests that any policy issues raised could be discussed with the Department of Defense and the President, but does not give rise to any legal questions regarding the Marshals' authority.

    7/27/2020

  • Travel Restrictions on Iranian Permanent Resident Alients

    The document discusses the proposal to advise the Acting Commissioner of the ISNS to revoke the legal basis for a regulation that restricts the re-entry into the United States of Iranian citizens who are permanent resident aliens. It concludes that President Carter's revocation of the Executive Order requires the revocation of the regulation. The document presents the question of whether the restriction should be reimposed, given that the national emergency declared at the outset of the hostage crisis remains in effect. The Interagency Working Group on Iran is currently considering this question, with the inclination at the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State level being against reimposition.

    10/27/2020

  • Memorandum to the Attorney General from the Director of the FBI dealing with certain types of FBI assistance to foreign law enforcement agencies.

    The document is a memorandum discussing FBI assistance to foreign law enforcement agencies and the legal opinions surrounding it. It mentions a memorandum from 1976 that established guidelines for FBI cooperation with foreign governments, and the need for further analysis of the legal issues involved. The conclusion reached is that the draft guidelines have undergone revisions and a copy of the most recent version is expected to be obtained from the Criminal Division. The questions presented for review include whether FBI assistance to foreign law enforcement agencies is authorized under 26 U.S.C. §533 and the need to prepare the necessary papers to amend the relevant section of the Code of Federal Regulations.

    7/27/2020

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