A New York trial court judge on Tuesday refused to lift an order that temporarily prohibits The New York Times from publishing or pursuing certain documents related to the conservative group Project Veritas. The judge asked for more time to consider arguments at the hearing.
The outcome of the hearing leaves in place an order that The Times and national First Amendment advocates have denounced as a highly unusual instance of a court's intrusion on constitutional protections for journalists. The order doesn't amount to a major imposement according to Project Veritas.
Lawyers for The Times had hoped that their arguments would convince the judge to lift the written order he issued last week.
Danielle Rhoades Ha, a Times spokeswoman, said in a statement that they welcomed the opportunity to address the court directly on the serious First Amendment concerns raised by a prior restraint.
Project Veritas, led by James O'Keefe, is a provocateur who uses hidden cameras and fake identities to attack Democrats, labor groups and news outlets.
The Justice Department is looking into the case of the diary theft of President Biden's daughter. The Times reported on the investigation and excerpted memos from a Project Veritas lawyer that examined the legality of the group's deceptive reporting practices.
The Times libel case began several years before those memos. The paper was accused of trying to humiliate a legal opponent by publishing the memos. The Times was ordered by Justice Wood to stop dissemination of the Project Veritas materials and cease further efforts to solicit or acquire them.
The New York Times may not use their opposing litigant's attorney-client communications to harm their adversary's substantial rights in this case, according to Elizabeth Locke, a lawyer for Project Veritas.
Project Veritas was asked by Justice Wood to file another brief. The Times can respond by December 3.
The Times asked a state appellate court to throw out Justice Wood's order, but it was denied.
