The August 4 Retirement Letter: University of Michigan Produces Timothy Lynch Departure Records
Timothy Lynch’s Retirement from the University of Michigan
On September 1, 2026, the University of Michigan produced an August 4, 2026 email exchange between Vice President and General Counsel Timothy G. Lynch and University President Domenico Grasso. The records were produced in response to a Michigan Freedom of Information Act request seeking records documenting Lynch’s resignation or departure from the University.
In his August 4 email to Grasso, Lynch wrote:
“I write with a mix of emotions to confirm that I will retire from the University of Michigan on Tuesday, August 25, 2026.”
Lynch described his thirteen-and-a-half years as the University’s general counsel as “the highlight of my entire career.” He also praised Grasso as a leader of the “deepest integrity,” writing that he had learned about “character and decency” by watching Grasso lead.
Grasso responded later that evening, characterizing Lynch’s communication as a “resignation letter.” He wrote that Lynch had served the University with “extraordinary wisdom, judgment, integrity, and heart,” describing him as a “trusted counselor” and “principled leader.” Grasso concluded:
“Even though you are leaving Michigan, I remain forever committed to saying what I have said many times before: you are the best general counsel in America.”
The August 4 Date
The date of Lynch’s resignation letter is notable.
On August 4, 2026—the same day Lynch submitted the communication that Grasso described as his “resignation letter”—the University issued its final determination in a separate FOIA request submitted by Dr. Foerster seeking records held by Lynch concerning Drs. Foerster and Petrou.
After nearly eleven months of processing the request, the University produced no records, stating instead that “responsive records that exist are exempt and withheld from disclosure.”
Stanford University
The chronology also intersects with Lynch’s previously announced move to Stanford University.
On July 29, 2026—six days before Lynch’s August 4 communication—Dr. Foerster transmitted a documentary notice concerning prior University of Michigan investigations, administrative proceedings, and related matters to Stanford’s president and Board of Trustees leadership.
The notice and accompanying chronology had originally been transmitted to Lynch and other University of Michigan officials on July 7 and incorporated 63 supporting exhibits. In the July 29 correspondence, Dr. Foerster informed Stanford that additional records had subsequently been obtained through FOIA requests and federal agency disclosures and that he had “not received a substantive written response from Mr. Lynch regarding the attached documentary notice.”
The purpose of the transmission was expressly limited. Dr. Foerster wrote that the materials were being provided “solely to ensure that Stanford University’s leadership has access to the underlying contemporaneous documentary record.” The correspondence did not ask Stanford to take any particular action or reach any particular conclusion.
Six days later, on August 4, Lynch submitted the communication that Grasso described as his resignation letter.
University of Michigan FOIA Release
The September 1, 2026 University of Michigan FOIA response and accompanying release are reproduced below.
August 4, 2026 Email Exchange
The responsive records include the August 4, 2026 exchange between Timothy Lynch and University President Domenico Grasso.
July 29, 2026 Stanford Documentary Notice
Selected Reporting
- Bradley Foerster Submits 140-Exhibit, 1,121-Page Documentary Chronology to FBI for Supervisory Review of the Investigation Involving Dr. Bradley Foerster, Dr. Myria Petrou, and Duaa Altaee
- From One FBI File to a Legislative Proposal: Peter and Maria Foerster Ask Senator Van Hollen's Office and Congressman Jamie Raskin to Consider a Uniform Administrative Framework for Federal Investigations
- Eva Feldman Documentary Chronology: 139 Exhibits on NIH R01NS082304, University Proceedings, and Federal Investigation — No Response Received
- Bradley Foerster and Myria Petrou Send Ann Arbor Officials Documentary Chronology on AAPD and Related Federal Investigations — No Response Received
- Timothy Lynch Documentary Chronology: 63 Exhibits on University of Michigan Office of General Counsel, University Investigations, and Law Enforcement — No Response Received
- Bradley Foerster and Myria Petrou Documentary Chronology: 8 Exhibits Document More Than Two Years of Efforts to Trace Bank of Ann Arbor's $1.4 Million Sheriff's Sale Credit Bid — No Response Received
Brad Foerster, MD PhD
Brad Foerster is a FOIA advocate documenting requests, transparency disputes, and accountability investigations involving public agencies, universities, police oversight, and Russia-Gate related inquiries. His work compiles original documents, timelines, and analysis of public records and institutional responses. Brad is also a board-certified radiologist, author of Town & Gown, and has published over 40 peer-reviewed articles. Brad lives in Potomac, Maryland with his family and is a member of the Montgomery County Medical Society and the Takoma Park U.S. & World History Book Club.