Democracy Dies in Darkness

Trump requests more time to reply to appeal of Florida case dismissal

Donald Trump will probably get the 30-day extension, making a ruling on Jack Smith’s special counsel appointment less likely before Inauguration Day.

3 min
The site of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in Atlanta in 2012. (Mike Stewart/AP)

Donald Trump’s legal team has requested a 30-day extension to respond to the government’s appeal of U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon’s dismissal of his classified-documents case, making it less likely that a ruling on whether the indictment should be restored will come before Inauguration Day.

The former president is very likely to be granted the extension. Special counsel Jack Smith did not oppose the request, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in Atlanta — where the government’s appeal was filed — says first-time requests for 30-day extensions should be approved.

Trump’s lawyers said they can’t meet the court’s Sept. 25 deadline because they are juggling other due dates related to Trump’s separate federal election interference case in D.C. They asked to move the 11th Circuit deadline to Oct. 25.

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