This article considers the three major issues that the studies of EU freedom of information law must cover. The first and second issues analyse  the development of the law and policy on freedom of information in the European Economic Community and European Union between 1984 and  2008. These two topics concern how the Council, the Commission, and the Parliament enacted and implemented the rules on FOI protection, and  on the role of the Community court in this field. The third major issue is about the examination of the roles of the European Parliament and the  European Ombudsman, which have supplemented the role of the Court in securing this right. As to the objectives of the studies of EU FOI law: on  the one hand, the studies seek to understand the degree of legal protection offered to freedom of information in the Union over the last two and  a half decades; on the other hand, the research seeks to identify how the current EU FOI regime could be improved. To accomplish these  objectives, attention is drawn to the following interrelated issues. First of all, it is worth considering the major controversies surrounding FOI law  and policy between 1984 and 2008. In particular, attention must be focused on the extent to which the 2001 Regulation addresses the pre-existing obstacles to FOI protection. Secondly, the exceptions in Article 4(1) and Article 4(2) of the 2001 Regulation can be categorised as mandatory and discretionary respectively, but the distinction between the two provisions is vague. This indistinct dividing line should be removed to  end the misunderstanding that the Council, the Commission, and the Parliament are entitled to refuse requests systematically when invoking the  so-called mandatory exceptions. Thirdly, it is necessary to analyse the principles established by the 2001 Regulation, the EC Treaty, or by the  Court to guide the interpretation of the exceptions laid down in the Regulation.