A federal judge in Florida has found President Donald Trump’s lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service was brought in “bad faith” for an “improper purpose” — and slapped sanctions on some of those involved.
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U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams, an Obama appointee, said that the lawsuit “was not brought to vindicate rights,” but to “manipulate the judicial process.”
Williams pointed out that despite arguments to the contrary from Trump’s attorney, these were not ordinary litigants. She noted that, as president, Trump has jurisdiction over the Justice Department, Treasury Department and the IRS.
“After a review of the record, and the Parties’ statements, the Court declines to adopt or accept the credulous exercise of divorcing President Trump’s current job title from an understanding of what happened here,” the judge wrote.
She said the facts of the case show it was “an attempt to use the Court to provide some legitimacy to an agreement to confer immunity to people and entities affiliated with the President,” while spending billions of taxpayer dollars.
She said the facts of the case demonstrate “there was never adverseness between the Parties; there was never a case or controversy; and there was never a question as to who would prevail.”
“Even the Fund amount—$1.776 billion—speaks of a ‘branding’ effort rather than a deliberate and thoughtful calculation of damages,” Williams wrote.
She noted the Justice Department could have easily mounted a defense in the lawsuit because Trump waited too long to file his claim, but they instead chose to strike a deal.
She ordered sanctions against a number of people involved, including Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and Associate A.G. Stanley Woodward. She directed a copy of her findings to be sent to the bar associations in New York and Washington D.C., “where disciplinary proceedings are currently ongoing” against Blanche and Woodward over alleged ethical violations.
She also referred one of Trump’s attorneys, Alejandro Brito, to the Florida bar association “for its consideration, review, and determination as to whether any disciplinary action is appropriate in light of the findings and rulings made in this Order.”
Brito did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
She held that future applications by another lawyer involved in the negotiations, Daniel Z. Epstein, the Vice President of America First Legal, to join cases in the Southern District of Florida “be DENIED for one year or until further order of this Court.” A request for comment was not immediately returned.
A spokesperson for Trump’s legal team said, “The IRS wrongly allowed a rogue, politically-motivated employee to leak private and confidential information about President Trump, his family, and the Trump Organization to the New York Times, ProPublica and other left-wing news outlets, which was then illegally released to millions of people. President Trump continues to hold those who wrong America and Americans accountable.”
Spokespeople for the Treasury Department and DOJ did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Earlier this year, Trump sued the IRS and the Treasury for $10 billion, alleging they failed to take necessary steps to prevent a former IRS subcontractor from improperly disclosing his tax returns, and those of his sons and his company, to news outlets.
They voluntarily withdrew the case two days before they were scheduled to submit a filing explaining how it was proper. They then announced the agreement for the “anti-weaponization fund” and an agreement making Trump and his family immune from IRS audits and investigations. Blanche signed the latter directive.
Blanche later said that both sides had agreed to do away with the “anti-weaponization” fund, but he has refused requests from Congress to put that in a written declaration and has also not made a similar representation about the audit agreement. He’s likely to get pressed on both issues at his Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday.
Williams’ order does not direct any action on the fund or immunity agreement, likely since they were struck without court approval, but she did direct that the government can’t portray the deals as part of a judicial agreement.
“President Trump, the Trump Organization, and anyone associated with Trump or the Trump Organization “are prohibited from referring to the purported ‘settlement agreement,’ or using, offering, admitting, or citing any of its provisions in any judicial, administrative, regulatory, arbitration, or any other official proceeding as evidence of a ‘settlement’ reached in this matter,” she wrote.
