The Justice Department can release investigative materials used in the sex trafficking case against Ghislaine Maxwell, a federal judge has confirmed.

Maxwell, a close friend of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, was put on trial in April 2021 on sex trafficking charges and, in June 2022, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Judge Paul A. Engelmayer confirmed the Justice Department could unseal grand jury transcripts and exhibits from both the 2021 Maxwell case.

The release of the files could come within 10 days due to the Epstein Files Transparency Act. The Justice Department must provide Epstein-related records to the public in a searchable format by December 19, AP News reported.

Judge Engelmayer's ruling comes just a week after a judge in Florida confirmed the Justice Department could release transcripts from an abandoned investigation into Epstein.

A further request to release records from Epstein's 2019 sex trafficking case is still pending. U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith ordered the release of grand jury materials from investigations last week.

Smith wrote that the files would be released under the authority granted to him by the Epstein Files Transparency Act. He wrote, "The Act applies to unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials that relate to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Consequently, the later-enacted and specific language of the Act trumps Rule 6's prohibition on disclosure."

The news of Maxwell's 2021 files being approved for release comes as her legal team is reportedly preparing a "long-shot bid" for a new trial.

It was previously reported that "lawyers for Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime Epstein counterpart, wrote in a letter filed Wednesday in federal court that she plans to soon file a court petition challenging her detention, a long-shot bid that, if successful, could result in a new trial