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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

WEST PALM BEACH DIVISION

CASE NO. 22-CV-81294-CANNON

DONALD J. TRUMP,

Plaintiff,

v.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Defendant.

________________________________/

PLAINTIFF’S PROPOSED ORDER OF 

APPOINTMENT OF SPECIAL MASTER

It is hereby ORDERED AND ADJUDGED as follows:

1. Pursuant to Rule 53(a)(1)(C) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and this 

Court’s inherent powers and authority, and subject to a declaration under penalty of perjury 

attesting to the absence of any ground for disqualification under 28 U.S.C. § 455, [name] is 

appointed Special Master. 

Duties 

2. The Special Master will review the materials seized during the August 8, 2022, 

execution of a court-authorized search warrant at the premises located at 1100 S. Ocean Blvd., 

Palm Beach, Florida 33480 (the “Seized Materials”); including any materials with 

classification markings. The specific duties of the Special Master are as follows and will

include all powers necessary to carry out those duties: 

a. Identifying personal items and documents in the Seized Materials; 

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b. Conducting a privilege review of the Seized Materials and making 

recommendations to this Court as to privilege disputes between the parties (including 

Executive Privilege);

c. Identifying any Presidential Records in the Seized Materials and 

making recommendations to this Court as to any classification disputes between the parties;

d. Additional duties may be assigned to the Special Master by the Court in 

subsequent orders, upon notice to the parties and an opportunity to be heard with regard to 

such additional duties; and

e. Once the Special Master has completed the review process set forth in 

this Order and any dispute has been fully adjudicated, any documents identified as 

Presidential records will be returned to the Archivist of the United States, and the process 

under the Presidential Records Act, 44 U.S.C. § 2204, will be followed to determine the 

assertion of any restriction on access.

3. The Special Master will have the full authority set forth in Fed. R. Civ. P. 53(c). 

4. To review the Seized Materials (other than documents with classification 

markings), the Special Master will follow a precise workflow:

a. For documents identified by the government’s filter team as potentially 

privileged –

i. the government will provide copies of the potentially privileged 

documents to Plaintiff’s counsel; 

ii. Plaintiff’s counsel will review the potentially privileged 

documents and provide a privilege log to the Special Master stating for each document 

whether Plaintiff claims that the document is privileged, whether the document sought to be 

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withheld is an attorney-client communication or subject to the qualified work-product 

immunity, or some other basis (including Executive Privilege), and the basis for that claim 

sufficient to enable the government, Special Master, and Court to assess that claim; and

iii. if the government agrees with Plaintiff’s position, the document 

will be returned to Plaintiff; if not, the dispute will go to the Special Master and, if the parties

disagree with the Special Master’s report and recommendation, to this Court for de novo

review and decision;

b. For the Seized Materials excluding documents identified by the 

government’s filter team as potentially privileged –

i. the government will provide copies of those documents to 

Plaintiff’s counsel; 

ii. Plaintiff’s counsel will review those documents, allocate them to 

one of four mutually exclusive and cumulatively exhaustive categories, and prepare a log 

similar to the privileged log in 4(a)(ii) sufficient to support the categorization into one of the 

four categories, which are:

aa. Personal items and documents – not privileged,

bb. Personal documents – privileged as attorney-client 

communications or qualified work-product immunity, 

cc. Presidential records – not claimed as Presidential 

communications privileged, 

dd. Presidential records – claimed as Presidential 

communications privileged (hereinafter, “Executive Privilege”).

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Reporting and Judicial Review 

5. Within seven days following the date of this order, the Special Master will

consult with counsel for the parties and provide the Court with a scheduling plan setting forth 

the procedure and timeline for concluding the privilege review and adjudicating any disputes 

as to privilege. The scheduling plan should include a process for resolving disputes as to 

privilege. 

6. The Special Master will file all written scheduling plans, orders, reports, and 

recommendations on the electronic docket, along with any additional information that the 

Special Master believes will assist the Court in reviewing those scheduling plans, orders, 

reports, and recommendations. Any potentially privileged, confidential, or national security 

material that is filed will be done so under seal. The Special Master will, during the pendency 

of this matter, including any appeals, preserve any and all documents or other materials 

received from the parties. 

7. The Special Master will make ex parte reports to the Court on an ongoing basis 

concerning the progress in resolving the issues above as the Special Master believes 

appropriate or as the Court requests. 

8. The parties may file objections to, or motions to adopt or modify, the Special 

Master’s scheduling plans, orders, reports, or recommendations no later than ten calendar 

days after the service of each, and the Court will review those objections or motions, and any

procedural, factual, or legal issues therein, de novo. 

Access to Information 

9. The Special Master will have access to individuals, information, documents, 

and materials relevant to the orders of the Court that are required to perform the Special

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Master’s duties, subject to the terms of this Order of Appointment. Such materials will be 

provided to the Special Master on an ex parte basis as the Special Master sees fit in connection 

with potentially privileged materials. The Special Master may communicate ex parte with the 

Court or either party to facilitate the review; provided, however, that all final decisions will be 

served simultaneously on both parties to allow either party to seek the Court’s review.

10. At a minimum, the Government will provide to the Special Master a copy of 

the Seized Materials, the search warrant executed in this matter, and the redacted public 

version of the underlying application materials for the search warrant. 

Compensation and Expenses 

11. Each party will bear 50% of the professional fees and expenses of the Special 

Master and any professionals, support staff, and expert consultants engaged at the Master’s 

request. The procedures for establishing and paying the Special Master’s compensation and 

expenses will be determined in a later order. Within seven days following the date of this 

order, the Special Master and counsel for the parties will confer on this issue and the Special 

Master will submit a proposal for the Court’s approval as to the procedures for paying the 

Special Master’s compensation and expenses. 

Engagement of Professionals, Support Staff, and Expert Consultants 

12. If the Special Master determines that the efficient administration of the 

Master’s duties requires the assistance of additional professionals, support staff, or expert 

consultants, the Master may submit a work proposal to the parties, who will have five business 

days to submit comments, after which time the Special Master may submit the proposal to 

the Court for consideration. 

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Other Provisions 

13. As an agent and officer of the Court, the Special Master and those working at 

the Special Master’s direction will enjoy the same protections from being compelled to give 

testimony and from liability for damages as those enjoyed by other federal judicial adjuncts 

performing similar functions. 

14. As required by Fed. R. Civ. P. 53(b)(2), the Court directs the Special Master to 

proceed with all reasonable diligence and in any event to conclude its review and 

classifications by _______________. 

15. The Special Master will be discharged or replaced only upon order of this 

Court. 

16. The parties and their agents and employees will observe faithfully the 

requirements of this Order of Appointment and cooperate fully with the Special Master in the 

performance of their duties. 

17. The parties and their agents and employees will observe faithfully the 

requirements of this Order of Appointment, cooperate fully with the Special Master in the 

performance of their duties, and comply with the judicial protective order that shall follow –

which will set forth restrictions on the disclosure by any person with access to Seized 

Materials and any documents generated in connection with this Order of Appointment.

18. The Court reserves the right to remove the Special Master if the Court finds 

that the parties are not expeditiously completing this work. 

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DONE AND ORDERED in Chambers at Fort Pierce, Florida, this ___ day of 

September 2022. 

 

AILEEN M. CANNON

UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

cc: counsel of record

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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I HEREBY CERTIFY that on September 9, 2022, I electronically filed the foregoing 

document with the Clerk of the Court using CM/ECF. I also certify that the foregoing 

document is being served this day on all counsel of record via transmission of Notices of 

Electronic Filing generated by CM/ECF.

s/

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