The U.S. Justice Department has submitted a renewed request to unseal grand jury transcripts from the sex trafficking cases involving Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. This request follows a ruling in August that determined the materials should remain sealed. The Justice Department argues that the Epstein Files Transparency Act, recently passed by Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump, necessitates the public release of these documents.

U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton referenced the new law in court filings, asserting that it requires the government to publish the grand jury and discovery materials related to Epstein within 30 days of the law's enactment, which is by December 19. The act compels the Department of Justice to release extensive materials gathered during investigations into Epstein's long-term sexual abuse of minors, while allowing for redactions to protect victims' identities.

The Justice Department has requested expedited rulings from federal judges Richard Berman and Paul A. Engelmayer to facilitate the release of these materials, which include testimony from law enforcement but not from victims. The department contends that the new law supersedes previous court orders that prevented public disclosure.

Judge Engelmayer has invited responses from Maxwell and Epstein's victims by December 3, with the government required to reply by December 10. The judge has indicated he will issue a ruling shortly thereafter.

The Epstein Files Transparency Act mandates the release of all unclassified documents and investigative materials, including those related to immunity deals and internal communications regarding potential charges. In August, Judge Berman ruled that the information in the grand jury transcripts was not significant enough to warrant unsealing, noting that the existing 100,000 pages of Epstein-related materials far exceeded the approximately 70 pages of grand jury materials.

The Justice Department's initial request to unseal the grand jury materials was made in July, following Trump's direction amid public pressure to fulfill a campaign promise to disclose the so-called Epstein files. Judge Engelmayer previously expressed skepticism about the motivations behind the push for transparency, suggesting that the administration's intent might be to create a misleading perception of openness. He noted that the grand jury materials do not provide new insights into the case or identify additional individuals involved in Epstein's criminal activities.