Judge voids Trump settlement with IRS
By: Aysha Bagchi
USA Today
..... A federal judge voided a settlement reached by President Donald Trump and his two oldest sons with the IRS that gave the family and its company sweeping tax protections and could have benefited people who attacked Capitol police on January 6, 2021.
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In a July 13 [2026] court order, Judge Kathleen M. Williams, an Obama appointee, wrote that the lawsuit was an attempt to legitimize the government's effort under Trump "to confer immunity to people and entities affiliated with the President" and to "earmark billions of dollars from American taxpayers" to address unclear grievances.
..... Williams prohibited the three Trumps from using or referring to the deal, which she described as a "purported 'settlement,' " in any official way, including in legal proceedings.
..... Trump and his two oldest sons brought a $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS. They alleged the IRS was liable for failing to protect their confidential tax returns after a contractor leaked tax return information from Trump family members from hundreds of thousands of other taxpayers.
..... The settlement which was negotiated by federal lawyers and a personal legal team for the Trumps, freed them of potential tax liability for past years.
..... The tax befits to Trump under the settlement could have been substantial. The New York Times reported in 2020 that Trump was in a decade-long audit battle with the IRS over a claimed $72.9 million tax refund, and losing that ballet could cost him more than 4100 million.
..... In addition, the settlement tired to cerate an "anti-weaponizaiton" fund for certain people who alleged they were victims of abusive government legal proceedings. The fund drew bipartisan criticism after some questioned whether January 6 [2026] rioters could receive taxpayer dollars. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche later said the Justice Department wouldn't move forward with the fund, and a federal judge also blocked the program.
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In ruling that the IRS settlement was improper, Williams wrote that the Constitution requires all court case to involve a dispute between two adversaries. That, she said, hadn't happened here: As president, Trump had control over the Justice Department, which defended the IRS against his own lawsuit. He issue an executive order in February 2025 "to ensure Presidential supervision and control of the entire executive branch."
..... Williams also refereed a lawyer for Trump, Alejandro Brito, to the Florida State Bar, which has the power to review the situation and potentially discipline Brito. She blocked another lawyer who signed the settlement agreement on behalf of the Trumps from representing plaintiffs in new cases in her Southern District of Florida court for a year. [2026]
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The White House referred USA Today to Trump's personal lawyers.
..... A spokesperson for Trump's legal team said in a statement that 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" news outlets which the spokesperson characterized as "left-wing."
..... "President Trump continues to hold those who wrong American and Americans accountable," the spokesperson added.