First Amendment group savages Mar-a-Lago judge for 'incorrect' ruling over Jack Smith report [View all]

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Law & Crime

Jan 10th, 2026, 11:20 am


A federal court of appeals should quickly overturn a ruling issued by a district court judge that severely limited who will be allowed to offer legal arguments about the fate of the second volume of former special counsel Jack Smith's final report on his investigations into President Donald Trump, a motion filed this week argues.

Late last year, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, who was appointed by Trump during his first term, issued two orders related to the long-delayed but still-lingering dispute over the second volume.

In the first order, Cannon flatly denied efforts to intervene lodged by the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University and transparency-focused nonprofit American Oversight. In her second order, however, Cannon acknowledged "any former or current party to this action" may move "for leave to intervene, if warranted, and/or from timely seeking appropriate relief before that deadline."

Now, the outside groups, in a 19-page motion, are imploring the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit to overturn Cannon's rejection – and to move forward with their appeal on an expedited basis. On Friday, the Knight First Amendment Institute filed the motion, and American Oversight joined, based on "statutory, common law, and constitutional rights of access to a document of singular importance to an ongoing and national debate about the character and actions of the President," the appeal reads.

Read more: https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/at-issue-is-the-public-right-of-access-first-amendment-group-savages-mar-a-lago-judge-for-incorrect-ruling-over-jack-smith-report-urges-appeals-court-to-quickly-reverse/

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Full headline: 'At issue is the public right of access': First Amendment group savages Mar-a-Lago judge for 'incorrect' ruling over Jack Smith report, urges appeals court to quickly reverse

Link to FILING (PDF) - https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ca11.94369/gov.uscourts.ca11.94369.10.0.pdf