Michigan FOIA Knowledge Center
Michigan FOIA Request Templates and Drafting Examples
Templates are starting points. Replace brackets with facts, remove categories you do not need, and verify the recipient. A focused request usually performs better than an all-purpose demand.
General electronic-record request
Under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act, I request electronic copies of the following existing public records: [describe records]. The relevant date range is [dates]. Please provide records electronically in their existing format. If any portion is withheld, please produce all reasonably segregable nonexempt material and identify the legal basis for each withholding.
Email request
I request emails, including attachments, sent or received by [custodians] between [dates] that [identify subject, parties, or focused terms]. This request includes responsive messages in official accounts and other accounts used to conduct the public body’s official business, to the extent they are public records.
Cost-control language
If the estimated fee will exceed $[amount], please provide an itemized estimate before performing chargeable work and identify which categories or search components account for the estimate so I may consider narrowing the request.
Rolling production
If responsive records can be produced in separable groups, please produce available nonexempt records on a rolling basis rather than withholding the entire production until every category is complete.
Use a template as a frame, not a substitute for judgment
The best template is the one a requester is willing to rewrite. Replace generic blanks with the names, systems, date ranges, record categories, and formats that fit the actual matter. Delete provisions that do not serve the request; boilerplate can make a simple request look more complicated than it is.
Before sending, read the request from the custodian’s perspective. Could two reasonable employees interpret it differently? Does it ask a question instead of identify a record? Does “all communications” need named people, a subject, or a shorter period? Those edits matter more than formal-sounding language.
Requester checklist
- Customize every bracket
- Delete irrelevant boilerplate
- Name likely custodians
- Ask for electronic format
- Set a fee threshold
- Save proof of submission
Primary sources
External authorities control. Confirm the current statute, decision, policy, and local procedures before relying on them.