Katie Phang And Her Opposition To Todd Blanche Motion For A Stay (Part 1) (9/23/26)

Katie Phang is opposing Attorney General Todd Blanche’s request to partially stay a September 16 enforcement order requiring the Justice Department to begin reviewing and producing foreign-language materials potentially covered by the Epstein Files Transparency Act. Phang’s filing argues that Blanche has already ignored the underlying June 25 preliminary injunction for nearly three months, including a July 2 compliance deadline, and is now trying to stop enforcement only days before a new September 24 deadline. Her attorneys argue the stay should be denied for several reasons: Blanche allegedly failed to confer with opposing counsel before filing the motion, the enforcement order itself is not immediately appealable because it did not change the parties’ legal obligations, and the request came far too late. Phang’s filing says the September order merely reinforced an obligation DOJ was already under and argues that Blanche cannot turn his own delay into a basis for emergency relief.

The filing also accuses Blanche of using successive motions and appeals to introduce arguments he did not make when the preliminary injunction was originally litigated. Phang’s attorneys argue that DOJ has not shown any irreparable harm from having to review records and comply with the law, while continued delay harms Phang’s work as a journalist and frustrates the public interest in disclosure of Epstein-related material. They also challenge DOJ’s position that FOIA is the proper mechanism for obtaining the records, noting that the government has simultaneously told FOIA requesters that the Epstein Files Transparency Act is the controlling avenue for release. Phang ultimately asks Judge Emmet Sullivan to deny the partial stay and leave the September 24 compliance deadline in place, arguing that Blanche has had months to address the foreign-language records and should not now be allowed to postpone the obligation through a late appeal.



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gov.uscourts.dcd.291779.47.0.pdf