Trump’s legal team asked Justice Clarence Thomas to issue an emergency order authorizing the special master’s authority to review over 100 documents seized from Mar-a-Lago with classified markings.

The request was directed to Justice Thomas because he oversees the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled last month that special master Raymond Dearie cannot review the documents that were marked classified.


The 11th Circuit also ruled that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) can continue using the documents in its investigation while the special master conducts his review. However, Trump’s filing on Tuesday does not seem to dispute that portion of the 11th Circuit’s decision.

“For our part, we cannot discern why Plaintiff would have an individual interest in or need for any of the one-hundred documents with classification markings,” the 11th Circuit three-judge panel wrote.

The 11th Circuit also questioned Trump’s claims that he declassified the documents in question.