Case: New York Times v. Department of Defense

1:26-cv-01690 | U.S. District Court for the District of District of Columbia

Filed Date: May 18, 2026

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Case Summary

(This summary is temporary while we research the case further). Filed on May 18, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, this lawsuit was brought by The New York Times Company and a national security reporter against the Department of Defense (DOD), the Secretary of Defense, the Chief Pentagon Spokesman and the Special Advisor. The complaint alleged that, beginning in early 2025, the DOD took escalating steps to restrict press access to the Pentagon, driven by hostility to unfavorable reporting, with officials publicly condemning news organizations' coverage as "garbage," "fake narratives," and "lies." On October 6, 2025, the DOD issued a new credentialing policy—the "October Policy"—that plaintiffs alleged granted officials unbridled discretion to revoke reporters' Pentagon Facility Alternate Credentials (PFACs) based on lawful newsgathering activities; after the vast majority of the press corps refused to sign the required acknowledgment, the DOD selectively issued new credentials to pro-Trump media outlets, praising them as "willing to serve" while condemning excluded journalists as "propagandists." On March 20, 2026, U.S. District Judge Paul L. Friedman granted summary judgment for plaintiffs and ordered reinstatement of their PFACs, finding the October Policy was viewpoint discriminatory; however, just one business day later, defendants issued an "Interim Policy" that closed the dedicated press workspace, imposed a requirement that PFAC holders be escorted at all times, and revived restrictions on newsgathering activities. Judge Friedman subsequently found the Interim Policy violated his prior order and enjoined its enforcement, but a divided D.C. Circuit panel granted a limited stay permitting the escort requirement to remain in force pending appeal. Plaintiffs asserted four claims—First Amendment viewpoint discrimination, First Amendment retaliation, Fifth Amendment due process, and violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA)—and sought declaratory relief, vacatur, injunctive relief, and restoration of press access equivalent to that which existed prior to the imposition of the challenged policies.

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People

For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73355736/parties/new-york-times-company-v-department-of-defense/

Judge(s)

Friedman, Paul L. (District of Columbia)

Attorney for Plaintiff

Boutrous, Theodore J. (District of Columbia)

Townsend, KatieLynn Boyd (District of Columbia)

Attorney for Defendant

Bruns, Michael Benjamin (District of Columbia)

Welch, Sarah (District of Columbia)

Judge(s)

Friedman, Paul L. (District of Columbia)

Attorney for Plaintiff

Boutrous, Theodore J. (District of Columbia)

Townsend, KatieLynn Boyd (District of Columbia)

Attorney for Defendant

Bruns, Michael Benjamin (District of Columbia)

Welch, Sarah (District of Columbia)

Attorney Contact Information via CourtListener

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Documents in the Clearinghouse

	Document
1 1:26-cv-01690	Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief New York Times Company v. Department of Defense	May 18, 2026	May 18, 2026 Complaint

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Docket

See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73355736/new-york-times-company-v-department-of-defense/

Last updated June 23, 2026, 3:05 a.m.

ECF Number	Description	Date	Link Date / Link
1	COMPLAINT for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief against DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE A/K/A DEPARTMENT OF WAR, PETE HEGSETH, TIMOTHY PARLATORE, SEAN PARNELL ( Filing fee $ 405 receipt number ADCDC-12427306) filed by THE NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY, JULIAN E. BARNES. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit 1 - Interim Policy [37-3], # 2 Exhibit 2 - Revised Policy Email [37-6], # 3 Exhibit 3 - October Policy [1-1], # 4 Exhibit 4 - September 18 Policy [1-5], # 5 Exhibit 5 - Parnell Letter to RCFP [1-3], # 6 Exhibit 5-1 - Redlined Acknowledgment [1-4], # 7 Exhibit 6 - RCFP Letter to Parnell [1-2], # 8 Exhibit 7 - Jason Crow Press Release, # 9 Exhibit 8 - Transcript of DOW Press Briefing, # 10 Exhibit 9 - Pete Hegseth Press Briefing - CSPAN, # 11 Exhibit 10 - Forbed Article re: James O'Keefe Asks About Identifying Anti-Trump DOD Members, # 12 Exhibit 11 - AP News Article re: Questions from new Pentagon press corps, # 13 Exhibit 12 - DOW Rapid Response X Post, # 14 Exhibit 13 - Cam Higby X post re: Press presence in Pentagon, # 15 Exhibit 14 - Wah Post Article re: Pentagon's new 'right-wing' press corps, # 16 Exhibit 15 - NYTimes Article re: Pentagon press corps support of Trump, # 17 Exhibit 16 - Scott Nover X Post re: Laura Loomer's tip request, # 18 Exhibit 17 - Scott Nover X Post re: Laura Loomer's tip request (cont.), # 19 Exhibit 18 - Laura Loomer X post re: Tip requests, # 20 Exhibit 19 - Sean Parnell X Post re: Announcmenets of new press corps., # 21 Exhibit 20 - Wash. Post Article re: Hegseth policy change on communications, # 22 Exhibit 21 - NYTimes Article: Fraidy-Cat at the Pentagon, # 23 Exhibit 22 - CBS News Article re: Declining new press requirements after 60 years, # 24 Exhibit 23 - Wash. Posrt Article re: Hegseth's legal fixer, Tim Parlatore, # 25 Exhibit 24 - Hegseth X Post re: Waving goodbye at reporters' refusal to sign, # 26 Exhibit 25 - NYTimes Article: Inside Hegseth's Effort to Limit Press Access at the Pentagon, # 27 Exhibit 26 - DOD News Article: Pentagon correspondent recalls 9/11, # 28 Exhibit 27 - Fox News Article re: Pentagon angry for report on Hegseth's security, # 29 Exhibit 28 - Joel Valdez X Post re: Safety risk from report on Hegseth's security, # 30 Exhibit 29 - Wash. Post Article re: Hegseth team ordered to stop polygraph tests, # 31 Exhibit 30 - Hegseth Press briefing on Iraon war - PBS, # 32 Exhibit 31 - Politico Article re: Parlatore's conflict-of-interest, # 33 Exhibit 32 - James O'Keefe X Post re: DOD officials criticism of Trump/Hegseth, # 34 Exhibit 33 - Spectrum News Article re: Hegseth blames media for second signal chat, # 35 Exhibit 34 - PBS Article re: Second Signal chat, # 36 Exhibit 35 - Pete Hegseth X Post re: Signal chat war plans, # 37 Exhibit 36 - Sean Parnell X Post re: Urging accountability for the NYTimes' lies, # 38 Exhibit 37 - AP Article: More news outlets lose Pentagon workspaces, # 39 Exhibit 38 - NBC Article re: Pentagon media rotation program, # 40 Exhibit 39 - Updated Physical Control Measures May 2025, # 41 Exhibit 40 - Cam Higby X Post re: Reporters creating a hostile work environment, # 42 Exhibit 41 - Sean Parnell X Post re: New Interim Policy, # 43 Exhibit 42 - Erik Wemple X Post re: Parlatore's press briefing, # 44 Summons, # 45 Summons, # 46 Summons, # 47 Summons, # 48 Summons, # 49 Summons, # 50 Civil Cover Sheet)(Boutrous, Theodore) (Entered: 05/18/2026) 1 Exhibit 1 - Interim Policy [37-3] View on RECAP 2 Exhibit 2 - Revised Policy Email [37-6] View on RECAP 3 Exhibit 3 - October Policy [1-1] View on RECAP 4 Exhibit 4 - September 18 Policy [1-5] View on RECAP 5 Exhibit 5 - Parnell Letter to RCFP [1-3] View on RECAP 6 Exhibit 5-1 - Redlined Acknowledgment [1-4] View on RECAP 7 Exhibit 6 - RCFP Letter to Parnell [1-2] View on RECAP 8 Exhibit 7 - Jason Crow Press Release View on RECAP 9 Exhibit 8 - Transcript of DOW Press Briefing View on RECAP 10 Exhibit 9 - Pete Hegseth Press Briefing - CSPAN View on RECAP 11 Exhibit 10 - Forbed Article re: James O'Keefe Asks About Identifying Anti-T View on RECAP 12 Exhibit 11 - AP News Article re: Questions from new Pentagon press corps View on RECAP 13 Exhibit 12 - DOW Rapid Response X Post View on RECAP 14 Exhibit 13 - Cam Higby X post re: Press presence in Pentagon View on RECAP 15 Exhibit 14 - Wah Post Article re: Pentagon's new 'right-wing' pre View on RECAP 16 Exhibit 15 - NYTimes Article re: Pentagon press corps support of Trump View on RECAP 17 Exhibit 16 - Scott Nover X Post re: Laura Loomer's tip request View on RECAP 18 Exhibit 17 - Scott Nover X Post re: Laura Loomer's tip request (cont.) View on RECAP 19 Exhibit 18 - Laura Loomer X post re: Tip requests View on PACER 20 Exhibit 19 - Sean Parnell X Post re: Announcmenets of new press corps. View on PACER 21 Exhibit 20 - Wash. Post Article re: Hegseth policy change on communications View on PACER 22 Exhibit 21 - NYTimes Article: Fraidy-Cat at the Pentagon View on PACER 23 Exhibit 22 - CBS News Article re: Declining new press requirements after 60 year View on PACER 24 Exhibit 23 - Wash. Posrt Article re: Hegseth's legal fixer, Tim Parlatore View on PACER 25 Exhibit 24 - Hegseth X Post re: Waving goodbye at reporters' refusal to sig View on PACER 26 Exhibit 25 - NYTimes Article: Inside Hegseth's Effort to Limit Press Access View on PACER 27 Exhibit 26 - DOD News Article: Pentagon correspondent recalls 9/11 View on PACER 28 Exhibit 27 - Fox News Article re: Pentagon angry for report on Hegseth's se View on PACER 29 Exhibit 28 - Joel Valdez X Post re: Safety risk from report on Hegseth's se View on PACER 30 Exhibit 29 - Wash. Post Article re: Hegseth team ordered to stop polygraph tests View on PACER 31 Exhibit 30 - Hegseth Press briefing on Iraon war - PBS View on PACER 32 Exhibit 31 - Politico Article re: Parlatore's conflict-of-interest View on PACER 33 Exhibit 32 - James O'Keefe X Post re: DOD officials criticism of Trump/Hegs View on PACER 34 Exhibit 33 - Spectrum News Article re: Hegseth blames media for second signal ch View on PACER 35 Exhibit 34 - PBS Article re: Second Signal chat View on PACER 36 Exhibit 35 - Pete Hegseth X Post re: Signal chat war plans View on PACER 37 Exhibit 36 - Sean Parnell X Post re: Urging accountability for the NYTimes' View on PACER 38 Exhibit 37 - AP Article: More news outlets lose Pentagon workspaces View on PACER 39 Exhibit 38 - NBC Article re: Pentagon media rotation program View on PACER 40 Exhibit 39 - Updated Physical Control Measures May 2025 View on PACER 41 Exhibit 40 - Cam Higby X Post re: Reporters creating a hostile work environment View on PACER 42 Exhibit 41 - Sean Parnell X Post re: New Interim Policy View on PACER 43 Exhibit 42 - Erik Wemple X Post re: Parlatore's press briefing View on PACER 44 Summons View on PACER 45 Summons View on PACER 46 Summons View on PACER 47 Summons View on PACER 48 Summons View on PACER 49 Summons View on PACER 50 Civil Cover Sheet View on PACER	May 18, 2026	May 18, 2026 Clearinghouse
2	LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by THE NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY (Boutrous, Theodore) (Entered: 05/18/2026)	May 18, 2026	May 18, 2026
3	NOTICE OF RELATED CASE by JULIAN E. BARNES, THE NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY. Case related to Case No. 25-04218. (Boutrous, Theodore) (Entered: 05/18/2026)	May 18, 2026	May 18, 2026 RECAP
4	NOTICE of Appearance by KatieLynn Boyd Townsend on behalf of JULIAN E. BARNES, THE NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY (Townsend, KatieLynn) (Entered: 05/18/2026)	May 18, 2026	May 18, 2026
5	SUMMONS (6) Issued Electronically as to DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE, PETE HEGSETH, TIMOTHY PARLATORE, SEAN PARNELL, U.S. Attorney and U.S. Attorney General (Attachments: # 1 Notice and Consent)(zjm) (Entered: 05/19/2026)	May 19, 2026	May 19, 2026
	Case Assigned/Reassigned	May 19, 2026	May 19, 2026
	Case Assigned to Judge Paul L. Friedman. (zjm)	May 19, 2026	May 19, 2026
6	MOTION for Preliminary Injunction by JULIAN E. BARNES, NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY. (Attachments: # 1 Memorandum in Support, # 2 Declaration of Theodore J. Boutrous, Jr., # 3 Exhibit 1 - News Article, # 4 Exhibit 2 - News Article, # 5 Exhibit 3 - Book Excerpts, # 6 Exhibit 4 - News Article, # 7 Exhibit 5 - News Article, # 8 Exhibit 6 - Court Procedures, # 9 Exhibit 7 - Article, # 10 Exhibit 8 - Article, # 11 Exhibit 9 - Webpage, # 12 Exhibit 10 - Webpage, # 13 Exhibit 11 - News Article, # 14 Exhibit 12 - News Article, # 15 Exhibit 13 - News Article, # 16 Exhibit 14 - News Article, # 17 Declaration of Julian E. Barnes, # 18 Declaration of Robert Burns, # 19 Declaration of Chris Meagher, # 20 Declaration of Pete Williams, # 21 Exhibit - Williams Declaration A - Email, # 22 Text of Proposed Order)(Boutrous, Theodore) (Entered: 05/22/2026) 1 Memorandum in Support View on RECAP 2 Declaration of Theodore J. Boutrous, Jr. View on RECAP 3 Exhibit 1 - News Article View on PACER 4 Exhibit 2 - News Article View on PACER 5 Exhibit 3 - Book Excerpts View on PACER 6 Exhibit 4 - News Article View on PACER 7 Exhibit 5 - News Article View on PACER 8 Exhibit 6 - Court Procedures View on PACER 9 Exhibit 7 - Article View on PACER 10 Exhibit 8 - Article View on PACER 11 Exhibit 9 - Webpage View on PACER 12 Exhibit 10 - Webpage View on PACER 13 Exhibit 11 - News Article View on PACER 14 Exhibit 12 - News Article View on PACER 15 Exhibit 13 - News Article View on PACER 16 Exhibit 14 - News Article View on PACER 17 Declaration of Julian E. Barnes View on RECAP 18 Declaration of Robert Burns View on RECAP 19 Declaration of Chris Meagher View on RECAP 20 Declaration of Pete Williams View on PACER 21 Exhibit - Williams Declaration A - Email View on PACER 22 Text of Proposed Order View on PACER	May 22, 2026	May 22, 2026 RECAP
7	NOTICE of Appearance by Michael Benjamin Bruns on behalf of All Defendants (Bruns, Michael) (Entered: 05/22/2026)	May 22, 2026	May 22, 2026
8	CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE by JULIAN E. BARNES, NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY . (Boutrous, Theodore) (Entered: 05/22/2026)	May 22, 2026	May 22, 2026
9	Consent MOTION for Briefing Schedule by DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE, PETE HEGSETH, TIMOTHY PARLATORE, SEAN PARNELL. (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Bruns, Michael) (Entered: 05/22/2026) 1 Text of Proposed Order View on PACER	May 22, 2026	May 22, 2026 RECAP
	Order on Motion for Briefing Schedule	May 26, 2026	May 26, 2026
	MINUTE ORDER granting 9 Consented to Motion for Scheduling Order. Defendants shall file their opposition to plaintiffs' motion for a preliminary injunction on or before June 4, 2026. Plaintiffs shall file their reply on or before June 9, 2026. The parties shall appear for a hearing on plaintiffs' motion for a preliminary injunction at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, June 12, 2026, in Courtroom 29 in the William B. Bryant Annex to the E. Barrett Prettyman Courthouse at 333 Constitution Avenue N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001. Signed by Judge Paul L. Friedman on May 26, 2026.(lccm)	May 26, 2026	May 26, 2026
	Set/Reset Deadlines AND Set/Reset Hearings	May 26, 2026	May 26, 2026
	Set/Reset Deadlines: Opposition due by 6/4/2026 and Replies due by 6/9/2026. Motion Hearing set for 6/12/2026 at 10:00 AM in Courtroom 29A- In Person before Judge Paul L. Friedman. (tj)	May 26, 2026	May 26, 2026
10	NOTICE of Appearance by Sarah Welch on behalf of All Defendants (Welch, Sarah) (Entered: 06/04/2026)	June 4, 2026	June 4, 2026
11	Memorandum in opposition to re 6 MOTION for Preliminary Injunction filed by DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE, PETE HEGSETH, TIMOTHY PARLATORE, SEAN PARNELL. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit 1 (Field Manual), # 2 Exhibit 2 (Valdez Declaration), # 3 Exhibit 3 (Parnell Declaration))(Welch, Sarah) (Entered: 06/04/2026) 1 Exhibit 1 (Field Manual) View on RECAP 2 Exhibit 2 (Valdez Declaration) View on RECAP 3 Exhibit 3 (Parnell Declaration) View on RECAP	June 4, 2026	June 4, 2026 RECAP
	.Order	June 8, 2026	June 8, 2026
	MINUTE ORDER: The Court will connect the public-access telephone line for the hearing scheduled for Friday, June 12, 2026 at 10 a.m. Any member of the public or media may access the public-access line by dialing (833) 990-9400 and using meeting ID 492497252. As a reminder, any use of the public-access telephone line requires adherence to the general prohibition against recording, livestreaming, and rebroadcasting of court proceedings (including those held by videoconference). Violation of these prohibitions may result in sanctions, including removal of court-issued media credentials, restricted entry to future hearings, denial of entry to future hearings, or other sanctions deemed necessary by the Court. Signed by Judge Paul L. Friedman on June 8, 2026.(lccm)	June 8, 2026	June 8, 2026
12	REPLY to opposition to motion re 6 Motion for Preliminary Injunction,,, / Reply Brief in Support of Plaintiffs' Motion for Preliminary Injunction filed by JULIAN E. BARNES, NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY. (Attachments: # 1 Declaration (Supplemental) of Theodore J. Boutrous Jr., # 2 Exhibit 1 - Max Frankel Affidavit, # 3 Exhibit 2 - NYTimes Article 1, # 4 Exhibit 3 - WSJ Article, # 5 Exhibit 4 - NYTimes Article 2, # 6 Exhibit 5 - CNN Video, # 7 Exhibit 6 - Washington Post Article, # 8 Declaration (Supplemental) of Julian E. Barnes, # 9 Declaration of Richard W. Stevenson)(Boutrous, Theodore) (Entered: 06/09/2026) 1 Declaration (Supplemental) of Theodore J. Boutrous Jr. View on RECAP 2 Exhibit 1 - Max Frankel Affidavit View on RECAP 3 Exhibit 2 - NYTimes Article 1 View on PACER 4 Exhibit 3 - WSJ Article View on RECAP 5 Exhibit 4 - NYTimes Article 2 View on RECAP 6 Exhibit 5 - CNN Video View on PACER 7 Exhibit 6 - Washington Post Article View on RECAP 8 Declaration (Supplemental) of Julian E. Barnes View on RECAP 9 Declaration of Richard W. Stevenson View on RECAP	June 9, 2026	June 9, 2026 RECAP
	1 - Terminate Motion and R&R Deadlines/Hearings AND 1 - Terminate Scheduling Order Deadlines AND 1 - Terminate Trial Management Order Deadlines AND Motion Hearing	June 12, 2026	June 12, 2026
	.Order AND ~Util - Set/Reset Deadlines	June 12, 2026	June 12, 2026
	Minute Entry for Motion Hearing held on 6/12/2026 before Judge Paul L. Friedman: The matter was before the Court on Plaintiffs' Motion 6 for Preliminary Injunction. Theodore J. Boutrous, Jr., Katielynn B. Townsend, Susan Pelletier, and Eric Brooks present on behalf of plaintiffs. Sarah Welch present on behalf of defendants. The motion was briefed, argued, and taken under advisement. Defendants' request to respond to new evidence submitted in plaintiffs' reply brief 12 is GRANTED. Defendants shall file their response on or before Wednesday, June 17, 2026. Plaintiffs shall file a response not to exceed five pages. (Court Reporter: Tammy Nestor)(mhp)	June 12, 2026	June 12, 2026
	MINUTE ORDER: Defendants shall file their response to plaintiffs' 12 reply on or before June 17, 2026. Plaintiffs shall file their response of up to five pages on or before June 18, 2026. Signed by Judge Paul L. Friedman on 6/12/2026. (mhp)	June 12, 2026	June 12, 2026
13	SUPPLEMENTAL MEMORANDUM to re 6 MOTION for Preliminary Injunction filed by DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE, PETE HEGSETH, TIMOTHY PARLATORE, SEAN PARNELL. (Welch, Sarah) (Entered: 06/17/2026)	June 17, 2026	June 17, 2026 RECAP
14	SUPPLEMENTAL MEMORANDUM to re 6 MOTION for Preliminary Injunction filed by JULIAN E. BARNES, NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY. (Boutrous, Theodore) (Entered: 06/18/2026)	June 18, 2026	June 18, 2026 RECAP