Emails Show Jack Smith’s Team Repeatedly Saw Privileged Materials, Contradicting Senate Testimony

Internal emails from former Special Counsel Jack Smith’s office show that investigators accessed potentially attorney-client privileged materials on at least six occasions between December 2022 and August 2023, according to records released by The Oversight Project through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit.

The documents, obtained in Oversight Project v. DOJ, document instances in which suspected privileged communications or other sensitive materials passed through filter team reviews and reached frontline investigators, including FBI agents. One Aug. 3, 2023, email from the special counsel’s records officer asked the FBI to search Outlook accounts for a document titled SM_MAL-0021793 that “may have been inadvertently sent to members of the investigative team” and to purge it if found. Another email from May 24, 2023, stated that a privileged document had appeared on a review platform and needed to be removed. In December 2022, a lawyer noted that a production contained potentially privileged material and would need to be redone.

On Aug. 8, 2023, one official wrote that he did not intend to read certain notes that had been forwarded and considered deleting the email for Freedom of Information Act purposes but decided against it. Other messages acknowledged that materials should not have reached the investigative team and discussed steps to correct the exposure. Marshall Yates, a former FBI congressional affairs official now with The Oversight Project, said the records show prosecutors and investigators reviewing materials before or outside filter team screening, which he described as inconsistent with required protocols.

The emails contrast with Smith’s testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 29, 2026. When Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., asked whether he had observed proper investigative protocols at all times, including the filter team, Smith replied, “Yes, we sought to do things consistent with the law and department policy.” He has previously stated that his office followed Justice Department policies and legal requirements. Smith has denied wrongdoing and has said he stands by his decision to prosecute President Donald Trump.

Department of Justice policy requires a filter team of agents and lawyers not involved in the underlying investigation to screen seized materials for privileged communications before they are shared with investigators. The Oversight Project said the newly released records show Smith’s team and the FBI discussed deleting records from systems on multiple occasions. The group stated that the documents appear to contradict Smith’s sworn assurances regarding compliance with filter team protocols and the Federal Records Act.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan referred Smith to the Department of Justice in July for possible prosecution, citing statements made during a December 2025 deposition that Jordan said conflicted with later-produced documents concerning access to members of Congress’ communications. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., has filed a civil suit against Smith alleging unlawful seizure of her phone records. The special counsel’s office also used a pen register and trap-and-trace device to log calls involving Trump campaign aide Susie Wiles and Trump’s defense lawyers, according to prior reporting.

Smith’s investigations of Trump focused on the classified documents case and the 2020 election interference case. Both cases were dismissed or otherwise resolved after Trump’s 2024 election victory. The Oversight Project has released prior batches of records related to the special counsel’s work, including materials tied to the Arctic Frost investigation.