The U.S. Department of Justice told a federal court on 7 July that it and the FBI are still “searching for and reviewing” records tied to Jeffrey Epstein, including any potential client list, in response to Judicial Watch’s Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. The filing offered no timetable for completion or release, despite public interest in the material. The court notice clashes with an unsigned DOJ–FBI memorandum leaked a day earlier that said the government had already provided the “maximum information” and that “no further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted.” The conflicting messages have reignited questions about the department’s transparency under Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel. House Judiciary Committee Democrats, led by Ranking Member Jamie Raskin, on 15 July formally asked Chairman Jim Jordan to hold a public hearing and, if necessary, subpoena Bondi, Patel and other officials to explain the handling of the “Epstein files.” Their letter also pressed President Donald Trump to keep campaign-trail promises to make the records public. Republican dissent is growing. Senator Thom Tillis, Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene and Eli Crane and several other GOP lawmakers have broken with the administration, publicly demanding that the files be released. Their stance contrasts with Trump’s recent dismissal of the controversy as unimportant. Additional pressure is coming from the Senate, where Democrats Dick Durbin and Chris Van Hollen have urged Bondi to deliver a full report on the documents within 30 days. Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said his organisation will continue litigating until the records are produced. Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges, is alleged to have abused more than 1,000 victims, and lawmakers argue that full disclosure is needed to restore public trust.