DOJ granted more time to return seized documents to Trump

The Department of Justice has been granted extended time by the recently appointed special master to provide former President Trump and his counsel the documents seized at Mar-a-Lago. 

U.S. District Judge Raymond Dearie has given Trump and the DOJ until Sept. 27 to agree on and enter into a contract with a document storage vendor in order to process the documents from paper to electronic form, the Epoch Times reports. 

Earlier in September, a judge granted Trump a special master to review evidence seized from his Mar-a-Lago home. The judge had ruled that the independent special master can "review the seized property, manage assertions of privilege and make recommendations thereon, and evaluate claims for return of property."

Other deadlines have also emerged as a result of that extension. The government has until Sept. 30 to give Dearie and Trump electronic form copies of all the materials and documents seized from Mar-a-Lago back in August.

Officials in the case have stated: 

"To allow the vendor to assign staff and do the work, and the district court to enter a judicial protective order, the government suggests moving the deadline for production of electronic copies of the Seized Materials to Friday, September 30, 2022, from the current deadline of Monday, September 26, 2022."

Trump and his counsel now have until Oct. 21 to give the special master "a final log of disputes over privilege" claims, which is a week later than they previously had.