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The FBI raid on former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate earlier this month uncovered “a limited set of materials” that are potentially subject to attorney-client privilege, federal prosecutors said in a Monday court filing.
The Justice Department’s new disclosure comes after Trump’s legal team had requested a special master — an independent third party — be appointed to review items seized during the Aug. 8 raid to ensure that any that might be protected by claims of legal privilege is set aside.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon issued an order over the weekend saying she was inclined to appoint the special master, but gave the Justice Department a Tuesday deadline to provide, under seal, a more detailed list of the items seized from Trump’s home.
The Justice Department agreed in its Monday filing to comply with the request, adding that FBI agents had already completed their review of the 27 boxes taken from Mar-a-Lago ahead of the judge’s order — a sign that Trump’s special master request could be too late.
Federal prosecutors said the FBI’s “privilege review team” was following procedures laid bare in the heavily redacted affidavit, which was unsealed Friday, for addressing materials that could fall under attorney-client privilege — including showing the documents to the court for determination.
“The Department of Justice and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence are currently facilitating a classification review of materials recovered pursuant to the search,” the DOJ’s filing said.
