The Judicial branch of the American government is exempt from FOIA. Isn't it great we have a hold 1/3 of our government that thinks they are exempt from us plebes oversight? They don't even hold themselves to the 'although it complies with the spirit of FOIA'. That seems way more concerning than the FED.
This isn't the whole story (from a serial FOIA person myself). The judicial branch is generally excluded from FOIA laws (it shouldn't be), but it is subject to disclosure under the First Amendment and the common law. While that doesn't provide any statutory wins (e.g. must disclose in X days etc), it does allow you to sue if say a court doesn't provide you with records you want.
see e.g. Nixon v. Warner Communications, Inc. (1978): recognizing the common law right of access to judicial records but allowed the court to deny access when interests such as privacy, national security, or fair trial rights outweigh the public's interest.
I have never seen a successful jailhouse lawyers suit to get FOIA type information from the Judicial system. They are instantly blanket denied under 'FOIA doesn't apply' in order to delay, with the underpinning jailhouse suit timing out before the information request to the Judicial system gets anywhere.
