U.S. District Decide Aileen Cannon’s choice got here after Trump’s authorized group and the Division of Justice each endorsed Dearie’s nomination — initially made by Trump — to parse the seized information for probably privileged materials.
Legal professionals and litigants who’ve appeared earlier than Dearie describe him as unbiased, thorough and even-handed jurist who’s match to wrangle the dueling sides. As a lot as any choose put on this tough place, they are saying he’s as much as the duty.
“He’s one of many few judges who each side wish to seem in entrance of. He’s held within the highest regard by attorneys. He’s somebody who really listens to the attorneys and considers what they need to say earlier than he decides,” stated Lindsay Gerdes, a former Brooklyn federal prosecutor.
Sean Hecker, an lawyer at Kaplan Hecker & Fink LLP who has had a number of circumstances earlier than Dearie (together with one pending) stated a lot the identical. “He’s independent-minded, extraordinarily sensible and smart. Arduous to think about a extra certified individual for this difficult task.”
Dearie is a former U.S. Legal professional for the Jap District of New York, a job he held from 1982 to 1986. He was chief choose of the Jap District from 2007 to 2011. He stays an energetic choose on senior standing, which means he has a diminished caseload.
He additionally served on the International Intelligence Surveillance Court docket for seven years — the place he was one of many judges who signed off warrants the FBI used to surveil 2016 Trump marketing campaign aide Carter Web page in an investigation into Russian election interference.
Federal investigators later decided an FBI lawyer altered an e-mail used to help the surveillance software — one thing Trump has used to discredit the complete investigation — although a choose on the FBI lawyer’s subsequent legal case acknowledged the appliance might need been granted anyhow.
Some paperwork seized at Mar-a-Lago had been marked “FISA,” indicating they relate to intelligence derived from overseas sources, in accordance with an affidavit within the case.
“He works extremely effectively with events, however doesn’t tolerate nonsense,” stated Richard Garbarini of Garbarini Fitzgerald P.C. “He won’t enable events, or attorneys, to play video games, or play fast-and-loose with the foundations.”
Although few, if any, circumstances will match the stakes and intrigue of the Mar-a-Lago investigation, Dearie does have some high-profile circumstances underneath his belt. These embody the corruption trials of a number of officers at FIFA, the worldwide soccer governing physique.
He additionally oversaw a courtroom battle within the 2017 New York Metropolis mayoral race. Former New York Metropolis Councilmember Sal Albanese didn’t meet polling and fundraising thresholds to achieve admittance into televised debates, and he sued town’s Marketing campaign Finance Board searching for an injunction so he might take the stage. However Dearie dominated the finance board’s standards weren’t partisan, subjective or discriminatory.
Albanese didn’t prevail, however he got here away with a optimistic impression of the choose.
“I feel he’s a good man, regardless of my shedding that case. He’s clearly very educated,” he stated in an interview. “His temperament was wonderful, and he was considerate. He requested lots of good questions. Very level-headed.”
Prosecutors and attorneys for Trump every offered Cannon with two choices as candidates for the job: Dearie and Paul Huck Jr., a Florida lawyer with important ties to figures in Trump’s orbit.
The Justice Division proposed Barbara Jones — a former federal choose and Invoice Clinton nominee who has crammed the identical particular grasp position in three different delicate investigations — and former federal appeals courtroom choose Thomas Griffith.
Trump’s group objected to each of these picks whereas the DOJ indicated Huck was not acceptable as a result of he had by no means served as a choose.
Alexander Coleman, an employment lawyer who has had a number of circumstances earlier than Dearie — together with a high-profile case the place an NYPD cop alleged office retaliation after reporting colleagues who tried in charge him for an additional detective’s botched investigation — stated he was impressed with the choose.
“He took a really tough, thorny challenge and he untangled it and reached the fitting end result,” he stated. “He’s very considerate and really contemplative.”
Dearie graduated from St. John’s College College of Legislation and has additionally labored as an lawyer in non-public apply. He’s initially from Rockville Heart on Lengthy Island.
The choose didn’t reply to a request for remark.
