MIAMI, FL — In a legal maneuver that has sent shockwaves through the federal bureaucracy, President Donald Trump has filed a massive lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury. The complaint, filed late Thursday in federal court in Miami, seeks at least $10 billion in damages, alleging that the agencies were responsible for the unauthorized and “politically motivated” disclosure of his tax returns during his first term in office.
The lawsuit centers on the actions of Charles Littlejohn, a former Booz Allen Hamilton contractor who was sentenced to five years in prison in 2024 for stealing the tax data of thousands of wealthy Americans, including Donald Trump, and leaking it to media outlets like The New York Times and ProPublica. While Littlejohn has already faced criminal prosecution, the President’s new civil suit argues that the IRS and Treasury Department displayed “gross negligence” by failing to implement the security protocols necessary to protect sensitive taxpayer information.
A Quest for “Total Accountability”
In a statement released shortly after the filing, a President’s spokesperson described the lawsuit as a necessary step to defend the privacy rights of all Americans.
“For years, the IRS was weaponized and utilized as a tool for political persecution,” the statement read. “The illegal leaking of the President’s private financial records was not just a breach of trust; it was a breach of federal law. This lawsuit is about ensuring total accountability and making sure this never happens to another citizen again.”
The filing alleges that the IRS’s internal controls were “non-existent” and that the agency’s leadership at the time allowed a culture of “partisan hostility” to compromise the integrity of its data systems. Legal experts note that the $10 billion figure is among the largest ever sought against the federal government in a privacy-related case.
A History of Legal Battles
The leak of Trump’s tax returns remains one of the most contentious episodes of his first administration. The records, published in several high-profile reports beginning in 2020, revealed details about the President’s income, debt obligations, and tax strategies. Trump has long maintained that the records were obtained illegally and that their publication was an attempt to damage him politically.
The lawsuit comes at a time when the Treasury Department, now under Secretary Scott Bessent, has taken aggressive steps to distance itself from past security failures. Earlier this week, the Treasury Department announced the cancellation of all existing contracts with Booz Allen Hamilton, citing the firm’s failure to prevent the Littlejohn leaks.
Political and Legal Implications
While the President is technically suing agencies within his own administration, the legal action targets the institutional failures that occurred under previous leadership. However, the move has drawn sharp criticism from Congressional Democrats.
“This is a transparent attempt to intimidate federal employees and further hollow out the IRS,” said one senior Democratic staffer. “The President is using the court system to settle old scores while his administration simultaneously slashes the very agency tasked with enforcing the law.”
The IRS is currently facing significant challenges. Recent reports indicate the agency has lost approximately 27% of its workforce since early 2025 due to budget cuts and leadership turnover. The National Taxpayer Advocate recently warned that the 2026 filing season could be the most difficult in decades for ordinary taxpayers.
If the case proceeds to trial, it could force the disclosure of internal IRS security protocols and high-level communications from the period of the leaks. Government attorneys are expected to argue that the agencies are protected by sovereign immunity, though the President’s legal team is betting that the “extraordinary nature” of the breach will allow the suit to move forward.
Sources and References
- Bloomberg: Trump Sues IRS, Treasury for $10 Billion Over Tax-Return Leaks
- Binance News: Trump Sues IRS and Treasury for $10 Billion Over Tax Return Leak
- Associated Press: IRS faces stiff challenges in 2026 tax season due to workforce cuts
- Zetter Zero Day: Booz Allen Tech Contractor Took IRS Job Specifically to Leak Trump’s Tax Records
- IRS.gov: National Taxpayer Advocate Annual Report to Congress 2026
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