It’s Epstein file deadline day

04:00 |

The Daily Docket

A newsletter by Reuters and Westlaw

By Caitlin Tremblay

Good morning. Today's the deadline for the DOJ to release a massive trove of documents from its investigations into Jeffrey Epstein. Plus, a federal judge will consider blocking the IRS and SSA from sharing data with immigration authorities; a judge was found guilty of helping a migrant evade a planned immigration arrest outside her courtroom; and I rounded up our top stories from 2025. Here are the most striking images from space released this year to launch us into the weekend (and beyond). 🪐

This is the last Daily Docket of the year. I'm taking a short break and will be back in your inbox on January 5. In the meantime, if there's anything you'd like to see in the newsletter next year send me an email. Thanks so much for reading and engaging with the newsletter these past 12 months. I'm very grateful. Happy holidays and see you in 2026!

Trump administration faces deadline for Epstein files release

Late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is seen in this image from the U.S. Justice Department's file of Epstein, released by the House Oversight Committee Democrats Washington, D.C., U.S., on December 18, 2025. House Oversight Committee Democrats/Handout via REUTERS

The DOJ faces a deadline today to release a massive trove of documents from its investigations into the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, after Congress overwhelmingly approved a new law forcing their disclosure last month.

It remains unclear how, or when, the files will be released today, but they will likely not represent all unclassified records held by the DOJ since the law allows the DOJ to withhold personal information about Epstein's victims as well as any material that would jeopardize an active investigation.

Coming up today

U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta in D.C. is set to hear arguments on President Trump's renewed bid for immunity from civil lawsuits seeking to hold him responsible for the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters. The judge will also weigh a bid by plaintiffs to stop the DOJ from taking over Trump's defense in the cases.
U.S. District Judge Mary McElroy in Rhode Island will hear a bid by a group of Democratic-led states to block the Trump administration from placing new restrictions on more than $3 billion in grant funding used to provide permanent housing and other services to unhoused people.
U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston will consider whether to block the IRS and the Social Security Administration from sharing data with ICE so that the agency can use the information to find and deport immigrants as part of President Trump's hard-line immigration agenda. Read the complaint.

Court calendars are subject to last-minute docket changes.

More top news

Industry insight

Hogan Lovells and Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft agreed to merge, creating a 3,100-lawyer mega-firm with a combined $3.6 billion in annual revenue. Read more here.
Law firms eye back-office deals as investors seek a new path into the legal market. Read this week's Billable Hours.
Moves: Milbank added global project, energy and infrastructure partner Thomas Sines from Paul Hastings ... Sidley Austin hired product liability and mass torts partner Paul Boehm from Williams & Connolly.
New partners: Haynes Boone elevated 14 to partner … Mintz promoted 12 to partner … Seward & Kissel elevated one to partner.

Year in Review

As we wrap up the year here at the Daily Docket, let's take a look at our to most-clicked stories from each month of 2025:

January: Trump hiring freeze hits law students headed to the U.S. Justice Department

February: Musk takes aim at law firms involved in Trump policy challenges

March: Why target these law firms? For Trump, it's personal

April: Milbank reaches deal with Trump as divide among law firms deepens

May: How Trump's own words helped him lose a fight with law firm Perkins Coie

June: Does U.S. law allow Trump to send troops to quell protests?

July: Two-thirds of the DOJ unit defending Trump policies in court have quit

August: U.S. legal jobs are rising again, but gains are mixed

September: Judges vexed by Supreme Court 'shadow docket' rulings in Trump cases

October: Washington lawyer on furlough lives out dream of running a hot dog cart

November: Law firm's AI experiment gives lawyers a break from billable hours

December: Unprecedented errors are eroding the credibility of Trump's Justice Department

In the courts

Anthropic is urging a federal judge to slash a proposed $300 million legal fee award for lawyers representing authors in a $1.5 billion copyright class action settlement with the AI company, arguing there is "scant justification" for a large chunk of the fees.
U.S. District Judge Haywood Gilliam Jr in Oakland, California, refused to grant preliminary approval to a proposed class action settlement between LinkedIn and subscribers who accused the company of monopolizing the professional social networking market. ⁠Read the order.
Instacart agreed to pay $60 million to settle the FTC's allegations that it deceived consumers about its Instacart+ membership and free delivery offers, according to documents filed in San Francisco federal court. Read the filing.

Additional writing by Shruthi Krishnamurthy and Namrata Arora.

Contact

Caitlin Tremblay

caitlin.tremblay@thomsonreuters.com

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