Judge Sullivan ruled on June 19 that the "changed circumstances" of the discovery that Hillary Clinton and members of her State Department staff used secret email accounts to conduct government business warranted "reopening" the lawsuit.
In asking Judge Sullivan to reopen the lawsuit, Judicial Watch cited a federal court rule (Rule 60(b)(3)) that allows a party to reopen a case due to "fraud (whether previously called intrinsic or extrinsic), misrepresentation, or misconduct by an opposing party:"
"The State Department had an obligation under the Federal Records Act to properly preserve, maintain, and make available for retrieval records of its official functions. In fact, it is the obligation of the head of every federal agency to do so. Secretary Clinton plainly violated her own legal obligations. Doing so was misconduct."
The State Department originally agreed with Judicial Watch's request but later changed its mind and asked the court to reopen the lawsuit because of "newly discovered evidence." Judge Sullivan simply reopened the case, rather than "spilling ink" on whether Hillary Clinton and the State Department committed fraud, misrepresentation or misconduct.
Huma Abedin left the State Department in February 2013, and in May 2013, Politico reported that, since June 2012, she had been double-dipping, working as a consultant to outside clients while continuing as a top adviser at State. Abedin's outside clients included Teneo, a strategic consulting firm co-founded by former Bill Clinton counselor Doug Band. According to Fox News, Abedin earned $355,000 as a consultant to Teneo, in addition to her $135,000 Special Government Employee (SGE) compensation.
Teneo describes its activities as providing "the leaders of the world's most respected companies, nonprofit institutions and governments with a full suite of advisory solutions." [Emphasis added] Outside of the U.S., it maintains offices in Dubai, London, Dublin, Hong Kong, Brussels, Washington, and Beijing. Teneo was also the subject of various investigative reports, including by TheNew York Times, which raised questions about its relationship with the Clinton Foundation.
In February 2014, the State Department assured Judicial Watch that it had searched the Office of the Executive Secretary, which would have included the offices of the Secretary of State and top staff. Relying upon the State Department's misrepresentation that the agency conducted a reasonable search, Judicial Watch agreed to dismiss its lawsuit on March 14, 2014.
This is the second Judicial Watch FOIA lawsuit that had been reopened because of the revelations regarding Hillary Clinton's email system. Judicial Watch is aware of no prior instances of federal courts reopening Freedom of Information Act lawsuits. Judicial Watch is litigating nearly 20 separate federal lawsuits concerning Hillary Clinton's email records.