Justice reconsidering state secrecy

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is poised to announce a new policy on using claims of state secrecy to block the release of information about controversial counterterrorism strategies like rendition and warrantless wiretapping.

The new policy is not expected to change the government’s position in any current cases.

A Justice Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to discuss the issue before the announcement, said the change would be announced Wednesday.

The revised policy was first reported by The Washington Post and New York Times.

Under the new approach, an agency trying to hide such information would have to convince Attorney General Eric Holder and a panel of Justice Department lawyers that its release would compromise national security.

Such claims of state secrecy previously have required a lower standard of proof that the information was dangerous, as well as the approval of fewer officials.

The Bush administration was criticized for invoking state secrets claims in lawsuits challenging post-Sept. 11 anti-terrorism programs, and the incoming Obama administration had promised a thorough review of such claims.

The Bush administration frequently argued that allowing lawsuits filed by people claiming they had been tortured or illegally wiretapped would harm national security.

The Obama administration, which is still dealing with some of those cases, has continued to assert the state secrecy privilege.