Former President Trump speaks at Mar-a-Lago on Nov. 15. Photo: Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg via Getty Images
An appeals court ruled Thursday to strike down the appointment of a special master to review documents seized from former President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.
Why it matters: It’s a big defeat for Trump and a win for the Justice Department, which has pushed to end the third-party review. The decision allows the DOJ to continue its investigation into the former president’s handling of classified documents.
What they say: “The law is clear,” the appeals court wrote. “We cannot write a rule that allows any subject of a search warrant to block government investigations after the warrant is executed. Nor can we write a rule that only allows former presidents to do so.”
- “Either approach would be a radical reordering of our jurisprudence by limiting the involvement of federal courts in criminal investigations. And both would violate fundamental separation of powers limitations.”
- “Accordingly, we agree with the government that the district court improperly exercised equitable jurisdiction and that the entire proceeding should be dismissed,” he continued.
- “To create a special exception here would defy our nation’s founding principle that our law applies ‘to all, without regard to number, wealth or rank.’
How it happened: The ruling comes after a three-member panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit last week appeared inclined to grant the DOJ’s appeal of the special master’s appointment during the oral arguments.
- The DOJ argued that a federal judge “erred in ordering a special master review for the executive and attorney-client privilege claims and enjoining the government’s use of the seized records in the interim.”
- Trump sought the special master, arguing that some of the records may be protected by attorney-client privilege or executive privilege.
The big picture: District Court Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, had granted his request and appointed former New York federal judge Raymond Dearie as a special master after the Trump team proposed him as to candidate and the DOJ agreed.
Worth noting: The three-judge panel includes Bush-appointed Chief Circuit Judge William Pryor and two Trump-appointed judges.
Current Status: The DOJ has appointed Jack Smith to oversee federal criminal investigations into Trump’s handling of classified documents and efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with additional background and reporting.