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 581–590 of 2202
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Legal Effectiveness of Congressional Subpoenas Issued After an Adjournment Sine Die of Congress
A congressional subpoena issued after an adjournment sine die of Congress lacks any legal force and effect and does not impose any legal obligation to comply with the subpoena. 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/19916/download.
11/12/1996
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UN Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Groups
The Constitution would not bar the federal government from establishing the kind of govemment-to-govemment relationship it presently maintains with federally recognized Indian tribes with other appropriately constituted indigenous communities within the jurisdiction of the United States. 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/19921/download.
11/1/1996
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Eligibility of a Noncitizen Dual National for a Paid Position Within the Department of Justice
The Department of Justice must determine the "dominant, effective" nationality of a noncitizen with dual nationality to determine that person's eligibility for a paid position in the Department under section 606 of the Treasury, Postal Service, and General Government Appropriations Act, 1997. 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/19926/download.
10/11/1996
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Department of Justice Participation on the Internal Revenue Service Undercover Review Committee
Disclosure of tax return information to a Department of Justice attorney serving on the Undercover Review Committee of the Internal Revenue Service is permissible under § 6103 of title 26 of the United States Code as a limited referral for legal advice. 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/19931/download.
10/8/1996
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The Constitutionality of Cooperative International Law Enforcement Activities Under the Emoluments Clause
The Emoluments Clause of the Constitution does not bar a proposed cooperative maritime counternarcotics operation, because the foreign naval personnel assisting U.S. law enforcement personnel would not hold an "Office of Profit or Trust" under the United States. 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/19936/download.
10/7/1996
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Assertion of Executive Privilege for Memorandum to the President Concerning Efforts to Combat Drug Trafficking
Executive privilege may properly be asserted with respect to a memorandum to the President from the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration containing confidential advice and recommendations regarding efforts to combat drug trafficking. The memorandum was subpoenaed by the Subcommittee on National Security, International Affairs and Criminal Justice of the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight of the House of Representatives. 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/19941/download.
9/30/1996
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Submission of Aviation Insurance Program Claims to Binding Arbitration
In insurance policies issued to air carriers pursuant to authority arising under chapter 443 of title 49, the Secretary of Transportation may include "50-50 clauses," which require that disputes between insurers over coverage liability be submitted to binding arbitration unless the insurers are able to negotiate a settlement in advance, if the use of such clauses is an accepted practice in the aviation insurance business. 49 U.S.C. § 44309 does not preclude the use of binding arbitration to resolve disputes regarding the liability of the United States for losses insured under chapter 443. 50-50 clauses included in insurance policies issued under chapter 443 may include a provision for arbitration under state or foreign law if it is a common practice of the commercial insurance business to resolve liability disputes by reference to the decisional rules of a non-federal sovereign. 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/19946/download.
9/27/1996
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Assertion of Executive Privilege for Documents Concerning Conduct of Foreign Affairs with Respect to Haiti
Executive privilege may properly be asserted with respect to certain documents subpoenaed by the Committee on International Relations of the House of Representatives that concern the Administration's conduct of foreign affairs with respect to Haiti. 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/19951/download.
9/20/1996
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Permissible Accommodation of Sacred Sites
The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment does not bar either an Executive Order that requires the accommodation of ceremonial use of sites on federal land that are sacred to federally recognized Indian tribes or a National Park Service regulation, designed to implement that Order, that prohibits the issuance of commercial climbing licenses at one such site during a period of religious significance. 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/19956/download.
9/18/1996
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18 U.S.C. § 207 and the Government of Guam
18 U.S.C. § 207(a)(1) prohibits a former Department of the Navy employee from representing the Government of Guam before the Federal Maritime Commission in a litigation in which he participated personally and substantially while employed by the Navy. 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/19961/download.
9/12/1996