Overview
- U.S. District Judge John Bates issued a preliminary injunction on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, finding the Presidential Records Act is likely constitutional and directing most White House aides to preserve presidential and vice presidential records.
- The order takes effect at 9 a.m. on May 26 and covers senior advisers, the chief of staff, components of the Executive Office of the President such as the National Security Council and Council of Economic Advisers, but it does not directly bind the President or the Vice President.
- Bates rejected the Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel memo that called the PRA unconstitutional, saying that Congress may treat presidential records as federal property under the Constitution’s Property Clause and that the OLC relied on a 'stark misreading' of precedent.
- The injunction explicitly requires preservation of communications on personal devices and non-official messaging apps, including text messages and Signal chats, responding to White House guidance that had narrowed what staff must save.
- Plaintiffs representing historians and transparency groups hailed the decision as a win for public access and oversight, and the administration has signaled it will likely appeal, setting up faster appellate review over enforcement and the scope of staff-level duties.