Mueller Files Early Response In Supreme Court Subpoena Battle With Russian Firm

Special Counsel Robert Mueller filed a response with the Supreme Court on Friday in a case involving a foreign company’s bid to resist a grand jury subpoena served to them, three days ahead of the Monday deadline imposed by the court.

While many of the details of the case remain under seal, an entry in the court docket indicates that a response was filed on Friday, along with an application requesting that the filing be placed under seal. The docket entry does not mention Mueller’s office, and was likely submitted by Solicitor General Noel Francisco’s office, according to Politico.

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the company’s attempt to disregard the subpoena last week. In doing so, the Appellate Court revealed in documents that the firm in question is owned by a foreign government and that the company was held in contempt of court after it rejected their plea to be excused from the subpoena on the grounds that answering it would violate the laws of its country of origin.

The connection between the Mueller investigation and Russia was established when a reporter heard someone ask for a copy of the Special Counsel’s filing at the D.C. Circuit Court in October, and a Circuit Court judge, who formerly worked at the White House as counsel for President Trump, recused himself from the case.

Further details of the case could emerge if the Supreme Court accepts the case, as the Supreme Court rarely hears cases on an entirely secret basis. If the high court rejects the appeal, then the details of the case will likely remain under seal.

As has been their standard practice, Mueller’s office declined to comment.

Here's the whole filing. Spoiler: It doesn't give away whose nude selfie Mueller now possesses, or how he obtained it. -> https://t.co/F7JkxqE3XT

— Brad Heath (@bradheath) December 27, 2018

These developments come on the heels of Thursday’s federal court filing in which lawyers for alleged Russian troll farm Concord Management and Consulting, LLC, asked the court for disclosure of evidence collected by Mueller’s team in the case, which Mueller has asked the court to keep from public view and the defense team as it is classified information. The defense team has complained that their discovery process is being hampered by the undisclosed information, making it impossible for them to build a defense, according to CNN.

The filing specifically references Yevgeny Prighozin, who is a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin, and also focuses on a “nude selfie” that Concord’s lawyers question could possibly be a matter of national security.

“Could the manner in which he collected a nude selfie really threaten the national security of the United States?” Concord’s lawyers ask in the filing.

It is unclear who was shown in the photo or how it came into Mueller’s possession, according to Fox News.