In an unprecedented move, former President Donald Trump, alongside his two sons, has initiated a billion-dollar lawsuit against the federal government due to alleged leaks concerning their personal and business tax returns. This civil action, lodged in a Miami federal court, demands $10 billion in damages.
The Trump family asserts that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the U.S. Treasury Department neglected their responsibility to protect what they describe as "confidential, personal financial information" from being disclosed by a former IRS contractor. This contractor, Charles "Chaz" Littlejohn, is currently serving a five-year prison sentence after being found guilty of leaking sensitive tax information to various media outlets.
During the 2016 presidential campaign, Trump infamously stated he would not release his tax returns because he was under audit. This stance made him the first presidential candidate in nearly half a century to withhold such information. He maintained this position again when running for re-election in 2020.
However, in September 2020, just prior to the November election, The New York Times published a detailed exposé on Trump's tax returns, unveiling that he had paid a mere $750 in federal income taxes during the year he was elected president and had managed to pay no federal taxes at all in ten of the preceding fifteen years.
The lawsuit claims that both the IRS and the Treasury had a legal obligation to secure these disclosures against public exposure but failed to implement necessary precautions to protect them. Trump, along with his sons—Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump—and the Trump Organization, contends that they have suffered reputational and financial damages, as well as public humiliation due to the leaks reported by The New York Times and ProPublica. They argue that these disclosures have unjustly harmed their business image, misrepresented them, and adversely impacted their public perception.
In 2023, Littlejohn admitted guilt to charges of stealing tax data from Trump and other affluent Americans while employed as an IRS contractor. He received a five-year prison sentence in 2024. The lawsuit accuses him of exploiting his access to confidential taxpayer data to advance his own political agenda, operating under the belief that he was above the law.
According to the lawsuit, Littlejohn viewed Trump as a "dangerous" individual posing a "threat to democracy," and believed that the disclosure of tax information was warranted in light of perceived political "norms." When questioned during a deposition about whether he intended to inflict harm on Trump, Littlejohn remarked: "Less about harm, more just about a statement. I mean, there's little harm that can actually be done to him, I think... He's shown remarkable resilience."
It's worth noting that Trump stepped down from his eponymous business and numerous associated entities in 2017, prior to assuming office for his first term.
