Yeah For EFF!

Federal Judge Lets Discovery Proceed In Domestic Spying Class Action Lawsuit

If I had a million dollars to spare, I would certainly share some of it with the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) for the work it does to assure that our liberties, rights and consumer issues are protected. Along with the ACLU, EPIC, Prof. Lawrence Lessig, the Berkman Center and other essential guardians, EFF is doing battle against the fascism that is eroding--and attacking--our civil liberties, invading our privacy and stealing our information.

US District Court Chief Judge Vaughn Walker issued an order Tuesday imposing a limited stay on discovery in a class action lawsuit challenging the legality of the Bush administration's domestic surveillance program, despite the government's request to stay discovery pending the outcome of an appeal to the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The order permits the plaintiffs to "propound a limited and targeted set of interrogatories," and if such motion describes "why the discovery will not moot the issues on interlocutory appeal to the Ninth Circuit," Walker will "entertain plaintiffs’ motion to lift the stay for the purpose of requiring a response."

Also on Tuesday, Judge Walker denied a media request to unseal documents filed in the case, including internal AT&T documents and a declaration from a retired AT&T telecommunications technician.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) brought the class action wiretapping lawsuit against AT&T in January, alleging that the company had unlawfully provided the National Security Agency (NSA) with access to its facilities and resources to unconstitutionally spy on "millions of ordinary Americans." The US Department of Justice (DOJ) moved to dismiss the case in July, citing "state secrets" among other concerns. Walker, however, denied the motion and ruled instead that the case can proceed safely because broad media coverage of the surveillance program had neutralized any danger of disclosing state secrets. In early November, the Ninth Circuit agreed to hear an appeal of the decision.