U.S. Supreme Court lets mystery company file appeal under seal

FILE PHOTO: A worker clears snow from the steps outside of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, U.S., November 15, 2018. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File Photo

By Lawrence Hurley

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed an unknown foreign government-owned company that is contesting a subpoena issued by a grand jury in a sealed case possibly linked to Special Counsel Robert Mueller's probe into Russia's role in the 2016 presidential election to file its appeal under seal.

The company is facing a daily fine of $50,000 imposed by a U.S. federal judge in Washington for refusing to comply with a subpoena issued in an investigation. The name of the country and the company and details of the investigation were not publicly disclosed.

The court on Jan. 8 rejected the company's emergency request seeking to put the fines on hold pending appeal.

The latest move by the court also means a redacted copy of the company's appeal will be available for the public.

(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Editing by Will Dunham)