Here is one for you.

A new court decision could begin to roll back some post-9/11 government secrecy that has forced nearly two dozen intelligence-related cases out of federal courts without rulings.

In a ruling unsealed last month, a federal appeals court questioned the application of the so-called “state secrets” privilege, which government lawyers can use to encourage a judge to drop a case by arguing it jeopardizes national security.

By using the privilege, government lawyers assert that if the case were to continue, they could be forced to divulge secrets that are vital to the nation’s security. If judges agree — as they nearly always do — they dismiss the case.

In a secret June ruling, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the dismissal on those grounds of a 1994 suit by a former Drug Enforcement Administration official who claimed the U.S. government had illegally wiretapped his communications when he was working out of Rangoon, Burma.

The state secrets privilege was not broad enough to throw out the entire case, the court ruled. With sufficient unclassified evidence already on hand, the court determined the case should be allowed to proceed.

The ruling could have an impact on current lawsuits involving classified programs, including suits against AT&T and the National Security Agency over the Terrorist Surveillance Program (TSP), which is alleged to have involved data and communications of Americans, according to experts.

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