Lawmakers Ask Court to Appoint Special Master to Force DOJ to Finish Epstein Files Release
House members and bipartisan co-sponsors confirm they are asking a federal judge to bring in a third-party special master to push the Department of Justice to finish releasing all files tied to Jeffrey Epstein, a dramatic escalation in the transparency fight.
The move raises conflict between Congress and the DOJ, as lawmakers say the department failed to comply with the law it passed that was supposed to force full disclosure of Epstein documents months ago.
So far, the DOJ has published about 12,285 documents out of an estimated more than two million, according to officials, meaning less than 1% of materials have been made public.
Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA) told U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer the department missed the Dec. 19 deadline, misused common law privilege claims and redacted records beyond what the law allows.
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“We’re escalating the things that we can do, and we’re starting with what we feel is the most polite, expeditious way to get to a release of the files,” Massie said.
This matters because the Epstein Files Transparency Act became law in November 2025, giving DOJ 30 days to publish unclassified records related to Epstein — a requirement that appears unmet.
The petition for a special master could shift responsibility for oversight from DOJ to an independent official, a rare judicial remedy in disclosure disputes.
DOJ has not yet commented publicly on the request.
Next, the judge will decide whether to appoint a special master and what scope that overseer would have.
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