Administrative stay in 9/11 pretrial agreements case

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit yesterday granted an administrative stay of proceedings in the 9/11 military commission case to afford it time for briefing and argument on the government;'s petition for mandamus or prohibition. The court's order in In re United States, No. 25-1009, states in part:

FURTHER ORDERED that proceedings before the Military Commission concerning pretrial agreements entered into by Khalid Shaikh Mohammad, Walid bin ‘Attash, and Mustafa al Hawsawi be administratively stayed pending further order of the court. The purpose of this administrative stay is to allow the court time to receive full briefing on the mandamus petition, to hear oral argument on an expedited basis, and to render a decision on the petition and stay motion. The administrative stay should not be construed in any way as a ruling on the merits of that petition or motion. See D.C. Circuit Handbook of Practice and Internal Procedures 33 (2024). It is

FURTHER ORDERED that any responses to the mandamus petition, not to exceed 7,800 words, be filed by 5:00 p.m. on January 17, 2025. See Fed. R. App. P. 21(b); D.C. Cir. Rule 21(a). Respondents are encouraged to coordinate and, if possible, to file a joint response. Petitioner may file a reply, not to exceed 3,900 words, by 5:00 p.m. on January 22, 2025. The parties should also file, by 5:00 p.m. on January 17, 2025, a joint appendix containing any transcripts and documents cited by the parties and not already submitted as attachments to the petition. The parties are directed to file eight paper copies of the petition, any responses, any reply, and the joint appendix. The copies must bear the appropriately colored covers. See Fed. R. App. P. 32. The parties will be informed later of the date and time of oral argument.