Special Counsel Jack Smith is seeking to reinstate the classified documents case against former president Donald Trump following its dismissal last month by Judge Aileen Cannon. In a brief submitted to the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta on Monday, Smith contended that Cannon’s ruling to terminate the case on the grounds that the prosecutors’ office lacked constitutional authority was “novel” and “lack[ed] merit.”
Cannon had ruled that the Justice Department lacked the authority to appoint or fund special counsels such as Smith. Smith’s team argued that Cannon’s decision not only impacts other special counsel cases—such as those involving Trump and Hunter Biden—but could also influence the authority of leaders across the federal government, according to CNN.
“If the Attorney General lacks the power to appoint inferior officers, that conclusion would invalidate the appointment of every member of the Department who exercises significant authority and occupies a continuing office, other than the few that are specifically identified by statute,” Smith’s office wrote in the 81-page filing.
“The district court’s rationale would likewise raise questions about hundreds of appointments throughout the Executive Branch, including in the Departments of Defence, State, Treasury, and Labor,” the prosecutors added.
Last summer, Trump was charged with multiple counts of mishandling sensitive government documents taken from the White House at the end of his presidency. Additionally, the Republican presidential nominee faces several obstruction charges related to alleged attempts to obstruct the federal investigation into these materials.
Trump and his two co-defendants—who are also accused of obstruction—have pleaded not guilty. The 11th Circuit is reviewing Cannon’s findings that Smith’s appointment as special counsel was unconstitutional and that his office’s funding was unlawfully allocated, as reported by CNN.
While other courts have upheld the use of special counsels, Cannon determined that Congress had not granted the Justice Department the authority to make such an appointment and concluded that the funding for Smith’s office had not been properly appropriated by lawmakers.
