The state secrets privilege allows the president and the executive branch to withhold information or documents from discovery in legal proceedings if such release would harm national security . Precedent for the privilege arose early in the 19th century when Thomas Jefferson refused to release military documents in the treason trial of Aaron Burr and again in '' Totten v. United States '' , when the Supreme Court dismissed a case brought by a former Union spy . However , the privilege was not formally recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court until '' United States v. Reynolds '' , where it was held to be a common law evidentiary privilege . Before the September 11 attacks , use of the privilege had been rare , but increasing in frequency . Since 2001 , the government has asserted the privilege in more cases and at earlier stages of the litigation , thus in some instances causing dismissal of the suits before reaching the merits of the claims , as in the Ninth Circuit 's ruling in '' Mohamed v. Jeppesen Dataplan , Inc. '' Critics of the privilege claim its use has become a tool for the government to cover up illegal or embarrassing government actions
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
President of the United States