Overview
- An Eleventh Circuit panel on Nov. 3 gave Judge Aileen Cannon 60 days to resolve motions from transparency groups seeking release, setting a deadline around Jan. 2, 2026.
- In a Dec. 2 filing, President Donald Trump asked to participate as amicus and urged the court to keep Volume II sealed, arguing disclosure would legitimize an unlawful investigation.
- The Justice Department and counsel for Waltine Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira told the court that intervention is improper and said they do not object to continuing the January 21, 2025 injunction.
- Volume II, which focuses on alleged obstruction and the retention of national security documents at Mar-a-Lago, has remained withheld since Cannon barred the DOJ from publishing it outside the department.
- If Cannon denies the motions or does not rule by the deadline, the dispute is likely to return to the Eleventh Circuit, with parallel FOIA suits and a proposed 60-day notice-and-redaction process potentially affecting any release timeline.