Former President Donald Trump’s legal team Tuesday filed a letter with the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York asking to delay a conference scheduled for Tuesday with the special master overseeing documents seized from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago, Florida, residence.
The conference with special master Raymond Dearie, a US District Court judge for the Eastern District of New York, was set to occur Tuesday in Brooklyn federal court. A schedule detailed in Trump’s legal team’s filing details the various steps involved in the special master’s process such as government production of documents and Trump’s claims of privilege. The process must be completed by November 30, according to an order from the Florida federal court overseeing the matter.
Trump’s legal team disputed the special master process because it requires Trump to present a defense as to why he had possession of the documents. According to Trump’s legal team, the defense was not originally required under the Florida federal court’s order. Trump’s legal team also disputes the proposed special master schedule, which would have the process completed by October 7. They ask that the court extend the deadlines to allow “for a more realistic and complete assessment of the areas of disagreement.”
The FBI first raided Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence on August 8. The judge overseeing the case granted Trump’s request for a special master on September 5. The judge then appointed Dearie on September 15.