Federal Courts and Special Counsel Oversight

Two watchdog groups, American Oversight and the Knight First Amendment Institute, have asked the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon’s moves to keep former special counsel Jack Smith’s classified‑documents case report secret after she dismissed the prosecution of Donald Trump. Cannon threw out the case in July 2024 on the theory that Smith was unlawfully appointed, and the Justice Department initially appealed, but later dropped its appeals against Trump and his two co‑defendants once Trump returned to the presidency, removing the criminal‑case rationale she had cited for secrecy. Under pressure from the 11th Circuit, Cannon finally ruled in December, acknowledging that justification “appears to no longer apply” yet still enjoining release of the report until Feb. 24 and inviting Trump, Walt Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira to seek broader protection, which they did; the Trump DOJ has now sided with them and even supported a request from the co‑defendants to destroy all copies. The watchdogs are appealing Cannon’s refusal to let them formally intervene and have also asked her to halt further proceedings in her court while the 11th Circuit decides whether a district judge can continue to block or order destruction of an internal DOJ report once any live case or controversy has evaporated. The appellate panel, which has already rebuked Cannon for 'undue delay' in this matter, will now decide how far her authority extends over the Jack Smith report and, by extension, future special counsel work product in politically charged cases.