The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued a ruling on a recent Wednesday that allows the Department of Justice to maintain access to the classified documents seized by the FBI. These materials are located at the Florida residence of former President Donald Trump, and the court clarified that only an appointed independent expert, Raymond Dearie, will have access to them as the matter moves forward.
A three-judge panel from the Eleventh Circuit, which encompasses Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, overturned a prior decision issued by U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon. Judge Cannon had rejected the Justice Department’s request to continue reviewing the seized materials. The appellate panel emphasized that the public has a legitimate interest in ensuring that the handling of confidential records does not create a risk of material harm to national security while the investigation proceeds.
On September 15, Cannon appointed federal judge Raymond Dearie, who previously served as chief judge of a district court in Brooklyn, to take sole responsibility for examining nearly 100 documents designated as classified and the documents physically associated with them. Dearie’s role is to provide an independent, expert assessment of the materials under review for the purposes of the ongoing investigation.
This week the Department of Justice appealed to the Eleventh Circuit, arguing that Cannon’s order would impede the government’s criminal investigation by delaying crucial steps and forcing the disclosure of highly sensitive records. In their filing, Justice Department lawyers contended that a narrowly scoped review focused on documents labeled as classified would better preserve the integrity of the inquiry and avoid undermining law enforcement’s ability to pursue key lines of inquiry within the case. The court’s decision to keep Dearie in place reflects a balancing act between transparency and security in the handling of sensitive materials.
During the broader investigation related to the former president, FBI agents conducted searches of Trump’s offices at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, uncovering a substantial volume of documents with varying classification markings. Trump, who served as president from 2017 to 2021, responded by taking legal action against the government in local Palm Beach courts. The matter has drawn scrutiny given the judge who accepted the appointment of an independent expert to oversee the document review also previously oversaw matters during Trump’s presidency, fueling debate about potential conflicts of interest and the impact on the investigation’s pace. Critics have questioned whether this arrangement might slow the government’s pursuit of evidence in the case.
The DOJ had requested that only documents marked as classified be eligible for review, with Dearie’s analysis limited to those materials and not extending to unrelated items. The suggestion to appoint an independent examiner, a step endorsed by Cannon, originated from the team representing Trump, who claimed it would restore confidence in the legality and thoroughness of the document-handling process. Attorneys for the government described the arrangement as a means to minimize disruption while preserving the ability to continue the criminal inquiry without exposing highly sensitive records to broad scrutiny.