How It Works

FOIA Friend helps you start a public records request with the right jurisdiction, statute, agency context, and practical timing information before you draft.

The Engine

The request draft is grounded in a structured Registry of Open Records Laws. The registry stores jurisdiction names, statute citations, response-time notes, fee context, appeal context, and best-practice guidance gathered from public records references and curated agency data.

You can inspect the data through the public browsing tools: Browse Agencies for agency-level records and friction notes, or Request Map for jurisdiction coverage.

Our Process

1. Jurisdiction: You choose the government whose records law applies.
2. Intent: You describe the records in plain language.
3. Agency context: FOIA Friend uses registry and agency data to pick the nearest request path.
4. Composition: The draft uses statute-specific templates and jurisdiction guidance.
5. Review: You get a ready-to-send draft and can inspect the assumptions before using it.