What Trump Lost and Won in Court Battle Over Mar-a-Lago Records

Four months after FBI agents seized government records from Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, his bitterly fought litigation with the Justice Department appears over. He lost in court. And unlike the last time that happened, he opted not to push for another long-shot US Supreme Court showdown.

But in the murkier realms of public relations, politics, and defense strategizing, the net result of his failed early challenge to the federal criminal probe is more complicated.

Trump succeeded in delaying the probe, a common thread through the former president’s past court fights with various investigative bodies seeking his personal and White ...