(DOJ) Professional Responsibility Advisory Office

223 Pages·2012·4.87 MB·English

Description of document: US Department of Justice (DOJ) Professional
Responsibility Advisory Office (PRAO) Office Manual and
New Attorney Notebook

Requested date: 10-October-2007
Appeal date: 13-October-2011

Released date: 30-September-2011
Appeal release date: 17-October-2014

Posted date: 16-April-2012
Update post date: 03-November-2014

Date/date range of document: Records undated

Note: Records released 17-October-2014 start on PDF page 221

Source of document: FOIA Officer
Professional Responsibility Advisory Office
Suite 12000, 1425 New York Avenue, NW
Department of Justice
Washington, D.C. 20530
Fax: [phone]
Email: [email protected]

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U.S. Department of Justice
Professional Responsibility Advisory Office
Washington, D.C. 20530
September 30, 2011
RE: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Request 09-019 (Remand of07-015)
I write on behalf of the Professional Responsibility Advisory Office (PRAO) to respond
to your October 10, 2007 Freedom oflnformation Act request for, among other things, "an
electronic copy of each manual or handbook issued by PRAO since January 1, 2005." PRAO
initially responded to your request on February 5, 2008 and informed you of two items
responsive to your fourth request, an internal Office Manual and an internal New Attorney
Notebook. The Office Manual was withheld in full pursuant to Exemption 2. The New Attorney
Notebook was withheld in full pursuant to FOIA Exemptions 2, 5 and 7(e).
You appealed PRAO's response to the Office oflnformation and Policy (OIP) on
February 9, 2008. On August 17, 2009, OIP remanded your request for "Manuals or Handbooks
Issued by PRAO since January 1, 2005" for further processing of responsive records. After
consideration of guidance provided by OIP, PRAO is releasing portions ofthe Office Manual and
New Attorney Notebook as described below.
PRAO's Office Manual
The PRAO Office Manual is distributed only to PRAO employees, does not affect a
member of the public, and consists solely of internal personnel policies and procedures. After
further review of the PRAO Office Manual and consistent with guidance from OIP, enclosed are
2 pages that are appropriate for release in full.
The remainder of the manual, consisting of approximately ninety-five pages, is withheld
in full pursuant to Exemption 2 ofFOIA as records "related solely to the internal personnel rules
and practices of an agency." 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(2). Additionally, portions of the withheld
materials are protected by Exemption 5 of the FOIA as inter-agency or intra-agency
communications "which would not be available by law to a party other than an agency in
litigation with the agency," 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(5), and by Exemption 6 as information about
individuals the disclosure of which "would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal
privacy." 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(6).
PRAO's New Attorney Notebook
After further review ofPRAO's New Attorney Notebook and consideration of guidance
from OIP, enclosed are approximately 198 pages that are appropriate for release in full. Also
enclosed are 3 pages of materials with redactions made pursuant to Exemption 5.
The remainder of the manual, consisting of approximately 675 pages, is withheld in full
pursuant to Exemption 5 of the FOIA. Additionally, portions of these materials are subject to
Exemption 7(e) ofthe FOIA as law enforcement information that "would disclose techniques and
procedures for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions, or would disclose guidelines for
law enforcement investigations or prosecutions if such disclosure could reasonably be expected
to risk circumvention ofthe law." 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(7)(e).
If you are not satisfied with this response to your request you may administratively appeal
by writing to the Director, Office of Information and Policy, United States Department of Justice,
Suite 11050, 1425 New York Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20530 within sixty days from the
date of this letter. Both the letter and the envelope should be clearly marked "Freedom of
Information Act Appeal."
Professional Responsibility Advisory Office
U.S. Department of Justice
Professional Responsibility Advisory Office
Washington, D.C. 20530
October 17, 2014
RE: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Request PRAO 12-034 (Remand of
PRAO 09-019)
I write on behalf of the Professional Responsibility Advisory Office (PRAO) to respond
to your October 10, 2007 Freedom of Information Act request for, among other things, "an
electronic copy of each manual or handbook issued by PRAO since January 1, 2005." On
September 30, 2011, PRAO released 2 pages in full from the Office Manual, approximately 198
pages in full from PRAO's internal New Attorney Notebook, and 3 pages of materials consisting
of the redacted New Attorney Notebook table of contents.
On October 13, 2011 you appealed PRAO's September 30, 2011 response to the
Department of Justice Office oflnformation and Policy (OIP), limiting your appeal to the table
of contents for the two manuals identified as responsive to your initial request. By letter dated
September 18, 2012, OIP informed you that the PRAO Office Manual did not have a table of
contents and remanded the New Attorney Notebook table of contents request to PRAO for
further processing.
Please find enclosed 3 pages consisting of the table of contents for the New Attorney
Notebook.
For your information, Congress excluded three discrete categories oflaw enforcement
and national security records from the requirements of the FOIA. See 5 U.S.C. § 552(c) (2006 &
Supp. IV (2010). This response is limited to those records that are subject to the requirements of
the FOIA. This is a standard notification that is given to all our requesters and should not be
taken as an indication that excluded records do, or do not, exist.
If you are not satisfied with my response to this request, you may administratively appeal
by writing to the Director, Office of Information Policy, United States Department of Justice,
Suite 11050, 1425 New York A venue, NW, Washington, DC 20530-0001, or you may submit an
appeal through the Office oflnformation Policy's eFOIA portal at
http://www.justice.gov/oip/efoia-portal.html. Your appeal must be received within sixty days
from the date of this letter. If you submit your appeal by mail, both the letter and the envelope
should be clearly marked "Freedom oflnformation Act Appeal."
Professional Responsibility Advisory Office
Professional Responsibility Advisory Office
Office Manual
I
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to the Professional Responsibility Advisory Office' of the United States
Department of Justice,
In 1994, the Department recognized the need for a program dedicated to resolving
professional responsibility issues faced by Department attorneys and Assistant United States
Attorneys. As a result, on April 19, 1999, the Department officially established the
Professional Responsibility Advisory Office (PRAO) as an independent component within the
Department of Justice.
The mission of the PRAO Is to ensure prompt, wnsistent advice to Department
attorneys and Assistant United States Attorneys with respect to professional responsibility
and choice-of-law Issues. PRAO complies with the rules of professional conduct that impose
on lawyers and their staff a duty to preserve and protect confidential information.
Information regarding any ethical advice given shall not be disclosed to any person outside
of this office.
PRAO is a service component. Employees are expected to carry out their assigned
duties in a professional and responsible manner. The success of PRAO Is dependent upon
Individual performance, team work and customer satisfaction.
The PRAO Office Manual is intended to serve as a source of information on the
functions of PRAO, and other administrative matters. Additional Information on Department
of Justice policies can be found at http:f(www.usdoj.gov/jmd/os/empobdorlent.htm.
' PRAO frequently receives receives calls and e-malls Intended for the Office of
Professional Responsibility {OPR}. PRAO and OPR are two separate components. OPR has
jurisdiction to investigate allegations of misconduct by Oepartment of Justice attorneys,
investigators and law enforcement personnel that relate to the exercise of an attorney's
authority to investigate, litigate or provide legal advice. other allegations of misconduct by
Department attorneys that do not fBI I within the junsdiction of OPR are Investigated by the
Office of the Inspector General {DIG). DIG is required to notify OPR of the existence and
results of any DIG 1nvest1gation that refleds upon the professional ethics, competence or
mtegrity of a Department attorney. In such cases, OPR is directed to take appropriate
action. In addition to reporting its findings and conclusions in individual investigations, OPR
is also charged w1th providing advice to the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General
concerning the need for changes in policies and procedures which become evident during
the course of OPR's investigations.

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