Judge rebukes Trump's IRS lawsuit, refers attorney for possible discipline
A federal judge has sharply criticized President Donald Trump's $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service over the leak of his tax returns, calling the case an abuse of the court system and referring one of Trump's attorneys for possible disciplinary action.
In a ruling issued Monday, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams said the lawsuit was filed for an "improper purpose" because Trump, as president, sued federal agencies under his own administration, raising questions about whether the opposing parties had genuinely adverse interests. The lawsuit ended in a settlement that granted Trump and certain family members protection from tax audits and initially created a $1.776 billion fund to compensate people who claimed they had been unfairly targeted by the justice system.
Williams stopped short of invalidating the agreement but ruled that the government cannot characterize the settlement as the product of a legitimate legal proceeding. She wrote that the lawsuit appeared designed to use the courts to legitimize immunity for individuals affiliated with the president and to direct billions of taxpayer dollars toward grievances not recognized under the law.
The judge's ruling comes ahead of Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's Senate confirmation hearing and is expected to draw renewed scrutiny of the Justice Department's handling of the case. Although the administration later abandoned the compensation fund following bipartisan criticism, it has indicated it still intends to pursue the portion of the agreement protecting Trump and his family from tax audits.
Williams also referred attorney Alejandro Brito, who filed the lawsuit, to the Florida Bar for possible disciplinary action and barred attorney Daniel Epstein from filing cases in the Southern District of Florida for up to a year. She also directed that her ruling be sent to legal disciplinary authorities in New York and the District of Columbia for review of ethics complaints involving Blanche and Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward.
The judge questioned Blanche's role in negotiating the settlement, noting that he later testified the compensation fund would not move forward despite no formal filing notifying the court. Williams also raised ethical concerns over Blanche's and Woodward's participation in the case because of their previous legal representation of Trump and other former clients who could have benefited from the settlement.
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