In Re New York Times Co. to Unseal Wiretap & Search Warrant Materials

JOSÉ A. CABRANES, Circuit Judge:

The United States appeals from a final order of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (Jed S. Rakoff, Judge) granting an application by The New York Times Company (the “Times”) to gain access to sealed wiretap applications relating to the investigation of the “Emperor’s Club,” a prostitution ring once patronized by the former Governor of New York, Eliot Spitzer. This appeal raises two questions: (1) Does Title III of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, 18 U.S.C. § 2518(8)(b) (“Title III”) — which permits…