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| Mary Altaffer/AP photo |
Cannon’s order included permitting a so-called special master to review the seized materials for potential attorney-client and executive privilege.
A federal judge on Monday ordered a halt to the Justice Department’s review of materials seized from former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, describing a threat to institutions and the risk of media leaks that could cause harm to Trump.
“Plaintiff faces an unquantifiable potential harm by way of improper disclosure of sensitive information to the public,” U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon wrote in a 24-page ruling issued on Labor Day.
Cannon’s order included permitting a so-called special master to review the seized materials for potential attorney-client and executive privilege. Prosecutors expressed exasperation at Trump’s demand to review for executive privilege, noting that there is no precedent for a former executive to assert privilege to bar review of materials by a sitting executive branch — particularly when the government has determined the need is urgent.
Anthony Coley, a department spokesperson, said it was “examining the opinion and will consider appropriate next steps in the ongoing litigation.”
Cannon, a Trump appointee who was confirmed by the Senate a week after Trump’s defeat in the 2020 election, gave the Justice Department and Trump’s lawyers until Sept. 9 to submit a joint filing to propose a list of special master candidates and outline their duties and limitations. In the meantime, Cannon ruled that the documents would not be returned to Trump. --->READ MORE HERE
A federal judge on Monday granted former President Donald Trump’s request to appoint a special master to review the trove of documents seized during the FBI’s raid on Mar-a-Lago last month, saying some of the materials were medical or tax-related.
The decision by US District Judge Aileen Cannon is a win for Trump and his legal team –and came despite objections from the Justice Department, which argued it had already completed a review of potentially privileged documents.
In her ruling, Cannon agreed to appoint a special master — an independent third party — to review the boxloads of personal items, documents and material seized in the FBI’s Aug. 8 raid on Trump’s home that may potentially be subject to claims of attorney-client or executive privilege.
“In addition to being deprived of potentially significant personal documents, which alone creates a real harm, plaintiff faces an unquantifiable potential harm by way of improper disclosure of sensitive information to the public,” Cannon wrote in her ruling.
Cannon, who was appointed by Trump in 2020, said in her order that some of the seized materials included “medical documents, correspondence related to taxes and accounting information.” --->READ MORE HEREFollow link below to a related story:
Judge grants Trump’s request to appoint special master to review Mar-a-Lago documents
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