Last Thursday, Dorworth dropped his defamation suit against Gaetz’s former associate Joel Greenberg, a convicted sex trafficker. According to the news outlet NOTUS, this move “sought to bury the scandal,” which has hung over Gaetz, who denies ever having had sex with a minor or engaging in human trafficking. (In late 2022, the Department of Justice recommended no charges against Gaetz in the matter, though a House Ethics Committee continues to investigate similar allegations.)

But on Friday, defense lawyers in Dorworth’s suit against Greenberg submitted papers arguing that the documents in the case should be unsealed, with the alleged victims’ names removed.

In response, Dorworth’s attorneys argue that all the transcripts in the case are “confidential.” However, Greenberg’s lawyer is arguing that the court was already leaning toward unsealing the documents, citing Magistrate Judge Daniel Irick’s comments about keeping the depositions secret.

“This is a case of public importance,” Irick said in court, according to NOTUS. “It is one that there may be media interest in, and it’s one that involves important issues … I’m not seeing any confidentialities that would really overwhelm the First Amendment right for the public to see this case, especially when a plaintiff brings claims in relation to their marriage and spouses and the kind of intimate issues in this case which are laid out in extreme detail in the … complaint. I am unlikely to seal anything because it all seems relevant.”

It is unclear whether Gaetz, who was subpoenaed in the civil case, sat for a deposition and whether any transcripts or video of it would be released if the court unseals depositions. However, any depositions released to the public might help the ongoing House ethics investigation into the Florida congressman. That probe has reportedly gotten its hands on texts and testimony from an unnamed woman who allegedly used to participate in sex parties with Gaetz’s circle of friends. That information could support other reports about the drug- and alcohol-fueled nature of the parties Gaetz was allegedly involved in.

Gaetz has denied all of these reports.

U.S. District Judge Carlos Mendoza, who was appointed by President Barack Obama in 2014, is overseeing the civil case and may make the final decision about whether to release the depositions. The decision is expected to happen by Sept. 19.