A federal judge on Monday granted former President Donald Trump’s request for a special master to oversee all the evidence the FBI seized last month from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate.
The request came amid questions over whether the FBI seizure on Aug. 8 included potential attorney-client or executive privilege issues. Trump’s attorneys argued in a recent court filing that “left unchecked, the DOJ will impugn, leak, and publicize selective aspects of their investigation with no recourse for [Trump] but to somehow trust the self-restraint of currently unchecked investigators.
The court’s order on Monday said a special master, an attorney from outside the government, would review “the seized property for personal items and documents and potentially privileged material subject to claims of attorney-client and/or executive privilege.”
The Justice Department had argued against the request, saying that a special master “is unnecessary and would significantly harm important governmental interests, including national security interests.”