Former President Joe Biden has filed a lawsuit against the Justice Department aiming to prevent the release of audio recordings and transcripts from an interview he gave to a ghostwriter. These materials were obtained by a special counsel as part of an inquiry into his handling of classified documents.
The lawsuit was lodged in federal court in Washington. Biden’s legal team claims the Justice Department intends to disclose the recordings to Congress and the conservative Heritage Foundation, despite previously deeming them exempt from public records law.
Biden’s attorneys argue that releasing the materials would violate his privacy rights. They stated, “Every American, including a sitting or former Vice President, has a right to privacy in the personal conversations he has within his own home.” They stressed the duty of the Justice Department to protect private information obtained in criminal investigations.
The recordings involve Biden’s discussions at his home in 2016 and 2017 with Mark Zwonitzer, who collaborated with Biden on his memoirs. These materials were reviewed by special counsel Robert Hur during an investigation into Biden’s mishandling of classified documents during his tenure as senator and vice president.
Hur’s investigation, which concluded with a 345-page report, questioned Biden’s age and mental sharpness but recommended no charges. The report cited insufficient evidence for prosecution. In a separate legal battle, Biden opposed releasing audio of his interview with Hur.
In 2024, after the White House invoked executive privilege, the House held Biden’s Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for not releasing the interview audio. The transcripts of five hours of interviews with federal prosecutors were released instead.
Biden maintained he treated classified materials with seriousness, though the transcript showed occasional uncertainty about dates and document details.
Political divisions marked responses to the investigations. Republicans accused Biden’s administration of leniency towards him while aggressively prosecuting former President Donald Trump for similar issues. Democrats emphasized Biden’s cooperation and contrasted it with Trump’s alleged noncompliance in a separate case involving the National Archives.