The schedule the justices set was not particularly speedy, though nothing prevents the special counsel from filing sooner than the court’s Feb. 20 deadline.
The Supreme Court is expected to confront three major cases that will shape former President Donald J. Trump’s legal battles. Each deals with laws open to multiple interpretations, with implications for his presidential candidacy and criminal trial on federal election subversion charges.
The ruling answered a question that an appeals court had never addressed: Can former presidents escape being held accountable by the criminal justice system for things they did while in office?