Earlier this month, in Trump v. Vance, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit considered whether a sitting President of the United States is immune from a state grand jury subpoena to a third-party custodian in possession of the President’s financial and tax records. In a unanimous opinion, written by Chief Circuit Judge Robert Katzmann, and joined by Circuit Judges Christopher Droney and Denny Chin, the Second Circuit held that presidential immunity does not bar a state grand jury from issuing a subpoena seeking non-privileged material to aid an investigation, even if the investigation may implicate the President. In light of recent and ongoing cases on the scope of presidential immunity, the Second Circuit’s decision represents a major, and potentially historic, step toward limiting a President’s immunity from a state criminal process.

The Manhattan District Attorney’s Subpoena

On Aug. 29, 2019, the District Attorney for New York County served a grand jury subpoena on Mazars USA (the Mazars subpoena), an accounting firm that has provided services to President Trump and his businesses. The District Attorney requested, among other things, the President’s personal and business tax returns dating back to 2011.