Overview
- A Florida federal judge issued a blistering written order on Monday finding that President Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS was filed to gain judicial legitimacy for a disputed Justice Department settlement.
- The opinion links the litigation to a now-defunct DOJ agreement that briefly created an $1.8 billion fund to compensate alleged victims of prosecutorial misconduct and says the suit sought results beyond legal authority.
- Judge Kathleen Williams referred Trump attorney Alejandro Brito to the Florida Bar for possible discipline and ordered that copies of the ruling be sent to the State Bar of New York and the District of Columbia Bar.
- The court’s order also imposes sanctions on lawyers involved and bars at least one private attorney from making court appearances in the Southern District of Florida for a year.
- Trump’s legal team denied wrongdoing and alleged an IRS leak to news outlets, news organizations have sought comment from the Justice Department, and the judge’s findings could trigger independent ethics investigations and further legal reviews.