Nearly half a century after Abe Fortas left the U.S. Supreme Court, his resignation continues to intrigue scholars dissatisfied with the long-accepted narrative about his departure. They still probe what can be endless rabbit warrens or wind up at dead ends.

Tuan Samahon of Villanova University School of Law, working on a book about Fortas, knows—he has experienced the long, frustrating and costly fight for information in FBI files under the Freedom of Information Act.