[Wikimedia-l] Update on Wikimedia Foundation v. NSA

Hello everybody, The Foundation is pleased to announce an update in Wikimedia Foundation v. National Security Agency,[1] our challenge to the U.S. National Security Agency’s “Upstream”[2] mass surveillance practices. We filed[3] the suit back in March 2015 to protect the privacy and free expression rights of Wikimedia readers, editors, and contributors. The U.S. government moved to dismiss the case, and in October 2015, the District Court granted that motion.[4] Soon after, we appealed.[5] This morning, the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals[6] ruled that the Wikimedia Foundation can proceed with the suit. The opinion[7] partially vacated and remanded the District Court ruling, which found that the Wikimedia Foundation and our eight co-plaintiffs lacked legal standing[8] to bring the case. The Fourth Circuit panel vacated this ruling as to the Wikimedia Foundation; two of the judges held that we have established standing, although the other plaintiffs have not. The final judge would have found standing for all the plaintiffs. This means our case can proceed, but not with the other plaintiffs. This is an important step in the fight against government mass surveillance, and a victory for the privacy and free expression rights of Wikimedia users. We are carefully reviewing the decision, along with our counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)[9] to identify next steps for our case. For the immediate time being, the case has been remanded back to the District Court of Maryland for further proceedings. We will keep you posted on the next steps. For more information, please see today’s blog about the case,[10] as well as our Wikimedia Foundation v. NSA resource page.[11] Best, Jim Buatti Legal Counsel [1] https://policy.wikimedia.org/stopsurveillance/ [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upstream_collection [3] https://blog.wikimedia.org/2015/03/10/wikimedia-v-nsa/ [ <https://blog.wikimedia.org/2015/03/10/wikimedia-v-nsa/>4] https://blog.wikimedia.org/2015/10/23/wikimedia-v-nsa-lawsuit-dismissal/ [ <https://blog.wikimedia.org/2015/03/10/wikimedia-v-nsa/>5] <https://blog.wikimedia.org/2015/03/10/wikimedia-v-nsa/> https://blog.wikimedia.org/2016/02/17/wikimedia-nsa-appeal-filed/ [6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Court_of_Appeals_for_the_Fourth… [ <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Court_of_Appeals_for_the_Fourth_Circuit> 7] <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Court_of_Appeals_for_the_Fourth_Circuit> https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/field_document/73._4th_cir_opinion… [8] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standing_(law) [9] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Civil_Liberties_Union [10] https://blog.wikimedia.org/2017/05/23/wikimedia-nsa-appeal-standing/ [11] https://policy.wikimedia.org/stopsurveillance/ -- James Buatti Legal Counsel Wikimedia Foundation 149 New Montgomery Street, 3rd Floor San Francisco, CA 94105 Jbuatti(a)wikimedia.org NOTICE: This message might have confidential or legally privileged information in it. If you have received this message by accident, please delete it and let us know about the mistake. For legal reasons, I may only serve as an attorney for the Wikimedia Foundation. This means I may not give legal advice to or serve as a lawyer for community members, volunteers, or staff members in their personal capacity.