Trump Lawsuit: IRS Settlement, Criminal Cases, Civil Judgments

Donald Trump is currently a party to an unusual volume of litigation. As of mid-2026, the active Trump lawsuits fall into four groups: a $10 billion suit he brought against the IRS that ended in a contested settlement, the remnants of four criminal indictments from 2023 and 2024, ongoing civil judgments against him personally, and more than 750 cases filed against his second-term administration.

The $10 Billion IRS Suit and Its Settlement

On January 29, 2026, Trump, his sons Donald Jr. and Eric, and the Trump Organization sued the IRS and Treasury Department in the Southern District of Florida. The case, Trump v. Internal Revenue Service (No. 1:26-cv-20609), alleged the agencies failed to protect the plaintiffs’ tax returns from Charles Littlejohn, a former IRS contractor who stole Trump’s tax data between 2018 and 2020 and leaked it to the New York Times and ProPublica. Littlejohn pleaded guilty in October 2023 and was sentenced to five years in prison in January 2024.¹

The plaintiffs sought at least $10 billion, arguing under Internal Revenue Code Section 7431 that every individual who viewed the leaked data in a news article amounted to a separate $1,000 statutory violation. An amicus brief from former government officials argued the suit was time-barred, that claims against a contractor should target the individual rather than the government, and that the damages figure was “legally and factually unsupported.”²

Judge Kathleen M. Williams raised the question of whether the court had jurisdiction at all, citing the “unique dynamic” of a sitting president suing agencies under his own control. Ninety-three House Democrats filed an amicus brief calling the lawsuit “unconstitutionally collusive” and warning that any settlement would be “corrupt self-dealing.”³

Before the court could rule, Trump filed a notice of voluntary dismissal with prejudice on May 18, 2026, ending the case.⁴

What the Settlement Did

The same day, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche ordered Treasury to transfer $1.776 billion into a new “Anti-Weaponization Fund.” Because the case was dismissed before any agreement was submitted to the judge, there was no judicial review. Judge Williams noted that the defendants “neither submitted any settlement documents nor filed any documents ensuring that settlement was appropriate.”⁵

Under the nine-page settlement, released by the Justice Department but never filed in court, the government issued a formal apology and the plaintiffs agreed to withdraw separate administrative claims seeking more than $230 million by June 15, 2026. Trump, his sons, and the Trump Organization received no direct payment and were barred from drawing money from the fund.⁶

An addendum signed by Blanche on May 19, 2026 declared the government “FOREVER BARRED and PRECLUDED” from pursuing examinations or audits of tax returns filed by Trump, his family, trusts, and affiliated companies before the settlement date. The Justice Department said this covered only existing audits, not future ones. Former IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel called the provision an “unprecedented remedy,” saying he was “unaware of a single precedent where the IRS has agreed in advance to permanently forgo examination of previously filed tax returns for a specific person or business.” Trump had faced a long-standing audit tied to a tax technique involving his Chicago skyscraper that experts estimated could have produced a tax bill exceeding $100 million.⁷ The addendum was not signed by any IRS representative.⁸

The Anti-Weaponization Fund Was Blocked

The $1.776 billion fund was to draw from the Judgment Fund, a permanent appropriation normally used to pay judgments and settlements against the United States. Ninety-three House Democrats and a bipartisan pair of senators argued that use was improper because the underlying lawsuit lacked a genuine dispute. A brief filed in Floyd v. Department of Justice contended the Judgment Fund requires “actual or imminent litigation.”⁹ Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington filed a separate suit in the District of Columbia calling the fund “brazenly illegal.”¹⁰

No money was ever disbursed and the five-member oversight commission was never formed. By early June 2026 Blanche told Congress the government was scrapping its plans. On June 12, 2026, U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema indefinitely extended a block on the fund and ordered the administration to file a sworn declaration that it would not revive the initiative before the injunction could be lifted.¹¹

Where the Four Criminal Cases Stand

Trump was indicted four times in 2023 and 2024. By mid-2026, one conviction stands, two prosecutions have been dropped, and one is frozen.

Manhattan hush-money case: A New York jury convicted Trump on all 34 counts of falsifying business records on May 30, 2024. Judge Juan Merchan denied a post-election motion to dismiss and, on January 10, 2025, sentenced Trump to an unconditional discharge, meaning no prison time, probation, or fine.¹²
Federal classified-documents case: U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the case on July 15, 2024, holding that the appointment of Special Counsel Jack Smith violated the Constitution. Smith dropped the prosecution on November 25, 2024.¹²
Federal election-subversion case: Smith also dropped this case on November 25, 2024, following the Supreme Court’s July 2024 decision recognizing limited presidential immunity for official acts.¹²
Georgia RICO case: A Georgia appeals court paused the prosecution indefinitely in June 2024 pending a decision on whether Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis should be disqualified. Additional charges were thrown out in September 2024, and the case remains frozen.¹²

Civil Judgments Against Trump Personally

The E. Jean Carroll Verdicts

Writer E. Jean Carroll won two jury verdicts. The 2023 verdict awarded $5 million for sexual abuse and defamation. The January 2024 verdict awarded $83.3 million, split between $65 million in punitive damages and $18.3 million in compensatory damages, for defamatory statements Trump made in 2019 while president.¹³

The Second Circuit upheld the $83.3 million verdict in September 2025, rejecting Trump’s presidential immunity arguments and finding the damages “fair and reasonable.”¹³ The court denied his petitions for en banc rehearing on both verdicts in April 2026.¹⁴ Trump has petitioned the Supreme Court on the $5 million verdict, and as of May 2026 the Court had rescheduled its consideration 11 times without action. Trump has said he will seek review of the larger verdict as well and is trying to substitute the federal government as defendant on the theory that the statements were made during his presidency.¹⁵ Neither verdict has been reported as paid or collected.

The New York Civil Fraud Case

New York Attorney General Letitia James sued Trump, his company, and two of his children in September 2022, alleging inflated real estate valuations used to obtain favorable bank loans. The trial court found the defendants liable for fraud and imposed a penalty approaching $500 million. On August 21, 2025, a New York appellate court upheld the liability finding and the injunctive relief limiting Trump and Trump Organization officers’ ability to do business in New York, but voided the monetary penalty as an “excessive fine” under the Eighth Amendment.¹⁶ The $175 million bond Trump posted earlier will be returned once appeals are exhausted. James has said she will appeal the monetary ruling to New York’s highest court.¹⁷

The Mar-a-Lago Tort Claim

In August 2024, Trump filed a $100 million administrative claim under the Federal Tort Claims Act against the Justice Department, alleging that the August 2022 FBI search of Mar-a-Lago amounted to intrusion upon seclusion, malicious prosecution, and abuse of process. The claim names former Attorney General Merrick Garland and former FBI Director Christopher Wray.¹⁸ Administrative filings of this kind are a prerequisite to filing suit under the FTCA; whether Trump has followed through with a federal court action has not been reported.

Lawsuits Against the Trump Administration

Litigation over Trump’s second-term executive actions dwarfs everything else in volume. As of June 12, 2026, the New York Times tracker counted more than 750 lawsuits filed since January 20, 2025. Of 172 cases with a final decision, plaintiffs won 67, the administration won 7, 96 were dismissed, and 2 ended in mixed outcomes. The Supreme Court had been involved in 31, with 6 still pending.¹⁹ The Just Security tracker, using broader criteria, counted 803 challenges, with plaintiffs prevailing in 262 and the government in 126.²⁰

Immigration

Immigration has produced the largest share. In W.M.M. v. Trump, a case over the administration’s use of the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport people accused of gang affiliation, the full Fifth Circuit was scheduled to rehear the case in January 2026 after a panel ruled the act had been improperly invoked. The Supreme Court had already barred deportation of class members during litigation.²¹ Barbara v. Trump, a nationwide class action, challenges an executive order restricting birthright citizenship for children of undocumented immigrants; the Supreme Court heard oral arguments on April 1, 2026 and had not ruled by late May.²² Hundreds of individual immigration judges have also ruled against a mandatory detention policy on due process grounds.²⁰

Removal of Independent Agency Leaders

In Trump v. Cook, the administration tried to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook without cause. Lower courts blocked the removal, and the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in January 2026. All nine justices expressed skepticism toward the administration’s position at argument, with Justice Brett Kavanaugh warning the theory would “weaken, if not shatter, the independence of the Federal Reserve.” It was the first time in the Federal Reserve’s 112-year history that a president had tried to remove a board member, and a decision was expected by summer 2026.²³ A related case, Slaughter v. Trump, tests whether removal restrictions for Federal Trade Commission members violate the separation of powers.²⁴

Law Firms, Voting, Funding, and Education

Executive orders imposing sanctions on major law firms that refused to do free legal work for the government were permanently enjoined in district court. The D.C. Circuit consolidated the appeals, with oral arguments scheduled for May 14, 2026.²⁰ More than 20 states sued to stop a sweeping federal funding freeze in New York v. Trump, and courts halted it.¹⁹ An executive order requiring documentary proof of citizenship for voter registration was permanently struck down in November 2025.²⁵ Courts also blocked DEI-related certification requirements and ordered the reinstatement of equity assistance center funding the administration had cut.²⁶

DOJ Prosecutions of Trump’s Critics

The Trump Justice Department has brought several criminal cases that critics describe as politically motivated. Former FBI Director James Comey was indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia, but the charges were dismissed in November 2025 after a federal judge found the appointment of interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan was legally defective. The DOJ reindicted Comey in 2026 on two counts of allegedly threatening the president, based on an Instagram post of seashells arranged to spell “86 47.”²⁷ New York Attorney General Letitia James was indicted and had her charges dismissed on the same procedural grounds as Comey’s original case.²⁸ Former National Security Adviser John Bolton, originally charged with 18 counts of retaining or disseminating classified information, agreed to plead guilty to a single count and faces a rearraignment in federal court in Maryland on June 26, 2026. The plea agreement carries a maximum $2.25 million fine and up to five years in prison, but allows the judge to impose no prison time.²⁹

1
Bloomberg Tax. Trump Sues IRS, Treasury for $10 Billion Over Tax Return Leaks
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Thomson Reuters Tax. Trump’s $10B IRS Suit Over Tax Data Leaks Raises Legal Issues
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House Democrats Judiciary Committee. House Democrats’ Litigation Task Force Fights to Block Trump’s Self-Dealing Settlement
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Thomson Reuters Tax. Trump Ends $10B Legal Battle With IRS as DOJ Orders Settlement Fund
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NPR. Trump IRS Lawsuit Settlement
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CNN. Donald Trump IRS Settlement Annotated
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PBS NewsHour. Experts Warn Trump Immunity From IRS Audit Could Undermine Trust in Tax System
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Politico. Trump IRS Settlement Tax Returns
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Democracy Forward. Floyd Motion of Senators Booker and Cassidy
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Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. Slush Fund Complaint
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KSAT. Judge Extends Block on Trump’s $1.8 Billion Anti-Weaponization Fund
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CNN. Trump Indictments Criminal Cases
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PBS NewsHour. Appeals Court Upholds E. Jean Carroll’s $83.3 Million Defamation Judgment Against Trump
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Courthouse News Service. No En Banc in Trump Appeals of E. Jean Carroll Verdict, $83 Million Judgment
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SCOTUSblog. Court Puts Off Deciding Whether to Consider $5 Million Verdict Against Trump Yet Again
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CNN. Trump Civil Trial Trump Organization Appeal
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New York Attorney General. Attorney General James Releases Statement on First Department Opinion Affirming
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6abc. Trump Sues DOJ, Wants Department of Justice to Pay $100 Million
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The New York Times. Trump Administration Lawsuits
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Just Security. Tracker: Litigation and Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions
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Brennan Center for Justice. W.M.M. v. Trump
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SCOTUSblog. Birthright Citizenship Oral Argument Highlights
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NPR. Supreme Court Federal Reserve Lisa Cook
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SCOTUSblog. Trump v. Cook: An Explainer
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NAACP Legal Defense Fund. LDF 2025 Wrapped
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NAACP Legal Defense Fund. LDF Trump Lawsuit Tracker
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The Hill. DOJ Indicts Comey Again
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The Daily Record. Trump Ally Comey Indictment Dismissed
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PBS NewsHour. Ex-National Security Adviser John Bolton Will Plead Guilty in Classified Information Case