US President Donald Trump during a meeting with Ali al-Zaidi, Iraq's prime minister, not pictured, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, July 14, 2026. Photographer: Graeme Sloan/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images
A federal judge referred for disciplinary action one of the lawyers representing President Donald Trump in his lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service and stated the case was filed for an "improper purpose."
Big picture view:
U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams characterized Trump’s lawsuit against the IRS for failing to prevent the leak of the president’s tax information as an exercise in self-dealing. Her ruling accused Trump and his lawyers of manipulating the court system by suing an agency the president controls and not following the requirement that two parties have adverse interests.
By the numbers:
The lawsuit, which was filed in January 2026, originally resulted in a settlement between Trump and the Trump administration’s Department of Justice that immunized the president from tax audits and created the now-abandoned $1.776 billion fund to compensate Trump allies who claimed they were victims of political persecution.
What they're saying:
"Whether Executive Branch actors can privately agree to give themselves and their former clients blanket immunities and billions of dollars in tax monies for legally undefined grievances was never an issue advanced to this Court," Judge Williams said.
The backstory:
Williams, who appeared critical of the case from the beginning, had directed Trump’s lawyers to explain whether the two sides had adverse positions and if the dismissal was based on deception. The recent ruling made clear that she was not satisfied with the response. Williams stopped short of voiding the agreement, however.
Dig deeper:
Williams referred the lawyer who filed the case, Alejandro Brito, for possible disciplinary action before the Florida Bar. Another one of Trump’s lawyers is not allowed to file a case in the Southern District of Florida for up to a year.
The Source: Information for this article was taken from The Associated Press. This story was reported from Orlando.