President Donald Trump listens as Attorney General Todd Blanche speaks at a roundtable event in the East Room of the White House, Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026, in Washington (AP Photo/Alex Brandon).
The Trump administration scored a victory on Thursday as a federal court ruled U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche will not have to sit for a deposition in a lawsuit brought by victims of Jeffrey Epstein.
In September 2024, a group of women alleging they were abused by Epstein filed a complaint against the U.S. government under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), which allows a party to sue for financial compensation. The women, referred to collectively as Jane Does, contend that agencies such as the FBI and U.S. Department of Justice — under different administrations in the preceding decades — did not properly handle or investigate the Epstein scandal.
The Trump administration, in keeping with its long-running opposition to Epstein-related revelations, moved to dismiss the lawsuit and lost. In September, U.S. District Judge David S. Leibowitz, a Joe Biden appointee, granted a 90-day window for limited discovery — including on the specific issue of how FBI rules and protocols concerning child sexual abuse tips are handled by the bureau.
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In early October, the women moved to subpoena Blanche, asking for “any and all documents pertaining to Jeffrey Epstein,” and with a proposed deposition date for later that same month.
The DOJ, in response, called the subpoena “extraordinary” and moved to quash on the grounds it would “threaten the separation of powers, chill agency decision making, discourage public service, and create potential for abuse or harassment.”
The government also requested a protective order barring Blanche from providing the testimony in question.
Now, U.S. Magistrate Judge Ryon M. McCabe, who was assigned by Leibowitz, has ruled in the DOJ’s favor.
The court began its analysis by noting that, in the strictest sense of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the motion to quash cannot be granted because the judge himself is sitting in southern Florida while the subpoena has to do with the jurisdiction of New York City.
“A federal court in Florida cannot quash a subpoena that calls for compliance to take place in New York,” the eight-page order reads.
But ruling on the motion to quash is essentially a formality. The real outcome was decided when the court granted the protective order — and identified two reasons to side with the government.
“[T]he Court finds that the Government has shown good cause for entry of a protective order,” the judge writes. “First, Plaintiffs’ duces tecum request for ‘any and all documents pertaining to Jeffrey Epstein’ goes far beyond the limited jurisdictional discovery permitted by the District Judge.”
The judge goes on to note that Leibowitz previously cabined discovery on the “two discrete issues” of FBI rules and protocols related to child abuse mentioned above, as well as the exhaustion of administrative remedies by the Jane Does.
“The duces tecum request goes far afield of these topics,” McCabe goes on.
The court also sided with the government based on the “apex doctrine.” This separation-of-powers-based doctrine is intended to protect “high-ranking government officials from judicial subpoenas for testimony except in rare circumstances.”
“To overcome the apex doctrine, the record must show ‘extraordinary circumstances’ or ‘special needs’ for compelling the appearance of a high-ranking officer in a judicial proceeding,” the judge continues. “Of significance here, the doctrine cannot be overcome where a claimant can obtain the desired testimony or information from alternative sources.”
That is, the court simply does not think Blanche is the best or only source of the requested information.
“Here, Plaintiffs are still in the midst of the limited jurisdictional discovery allowed by the District Judge,” the court explains. “They have not yet received responses to their written discovery, nor have they deposed the Government’s Rule 30(b)(6) witness(es). The Court has taken steps to expedite the outstanding discovery and will continue to do so to ensure Plaintiffs get the discovery they are due.”
To that end, McCabe’s order is a win for the government, but not a complete one.
The judge also notes that Blanche, during a July meeting with several Epstein victims, including many of the plaintiffs, “purportedly” said “you got screwed over by the FBI, but I cannot fix the FBI’s lack of investigation.”
Because of that comment, Blanche must answer some questions — but he will be allowed to do so in writing.
“In the Court’s view, these comments implicate matters potentially within the scope of the limited jurisdictional discovery allowed by the District Judge,” the order goes on. “As such, the Court will allow Plaintiffs to propound up to ten (10) interrogatories, pursuant to Rule 33, to be answered by Attorney General Blanche in his official capacity as an employee of the United States.”
The “scope” of those questions must be limited “to the comments allegedly made by Attorney General Blanche” during the meeting, the order notes.
The government will have 15 business days to answer the interrogatories, the court ruled.
Conrad Hoyt contributed to this report.
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