DOJ says only a "limited" number of Trump documents may be privileged

Only a "limited set" of the documents seized by the FBI from former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home may be protected by attorney-client privilege, the Department of Justice said in a court filing Monday.

Driving the news: The filing comes in response to a lawsuit filed by Trump last week seeking the appointment of a special master to review the materials seized and prevent the FBI from examining the seized documents until the special master is in place.

A special master, usually a third party like a retired judge, would review the material and determine whether it is protected by attorney-client privilege or other legal doctrines.

On Saturday federal judge in Florida signaled her willingness to grant the request for a special master and ordered the DOJ to file a public response to Trump's request as well as file, under seal, a more detailed list of the materials seized from Mar-a-Lago and the status of the review of the materials by Tuesday.