Trump Sues IRS And Treasury For Ten Billion Dollars

On January 29, 2026, former President Donald Trump filed a sweeping $10 billion lawsuit against the U.S. Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), accusing the agencies of failing to prevent the disclosure of his confidential tax returns to major media outlets in 2019 and 2020. The legal action, brought in a Miami federal court, also names Trump’s adult sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, as well as the Trump Organization, as co-plaintiffs. According to court records reported by Reuters and The Associated Press, the suit alleges that the government’s failure to safeguard sensitive tax data led to significant reputational and financial harm for the Trump family and their business interests.

The complaint, filed in Trump’s personal capacity rather than as a former president, centers on the actions of Charles Littlejohn, a former IRS contractor employed by Booz Allen Hamilton. Between May 2019 and at least September 2020, Littlejohn allegedly accessed and leaked Trump’s tax returns and related information to media organizations including The New York Times and ProPublica. The suit specifically targets what it calls “leftist media outlets,” asserting that the leaks were politically motivated and designed to damage Trump’s standing.

The legal filing pulls no punches. It asserts, “Defendants have caused plaintiffs reputational and financial harm, public embarrassment, unfairly tarnished their business reputations, portrayed them in a false light, and negatively affected President Trump, and the other plaintiffs’ public standing.” This quote, cited verbatim from the complaint and confirmed by Reuters, encapsulates the Trump team’s argument: that the fallout from the leaks extended far beyond mere embarrassment, inflicting lasting damage on their brand and public image.

Beyond the immediate reputational concerns, the lawsuit accuses the IRS and Treasury Department of failing to implement “mandatory precautions” and adequate safeguards that could have prevented Littlejohn’s unlawful conduct. According to the Associated Press, the court documents allege that the agencies “lacked safeguards to prevent Littlejohn’s unlawful conduct.” This, Trump’s lawyers argue, amounts to gross negligence on the part of the government, justifying their demand for at least $10 billion in damages.

The roots of the controversy trace back to Littlejohn’s employment as a contractor for Booz Allen Hamilton, a major defense and national security technology firm with deep ties to the federal government. Prosecutors, as reported by both outlets, described Littlejohn’s actions as “unparalleled in the IRS’s history.” He reportedly sought out the contracting job specifically to obtain Trump’s tax returns and then devised careful methods to search for and extract the data without triggering internal alarms. In 2024, Littlejohn pleaded guilty to leaking tax information about Trump and other individuals and was sentenced to five years in prison.

The scope of Littlejohn’s leaks went beyond Trump, but the former president’s case has drawn the most public attention, given his long-standing refusal to voluntarily release his tax returns while in office and the intense media scrutiny that followed. The leaks to The New York Times and ProPublica fueled a series of investigative reports that examined Trump’s finances, business dealings, and tax strategies—stories that reverberated through political circles and the public alike.

According to the Associated Press, the lawsuit also alleges that the leaks “unfairly tarnished their business reputations, portrayed them in a false light, and negatively affected President Trump, and the other Plaintiffs’ public standing.” The Trump Organization, which remains a central player in the former president’s business empire, is seeking redress alongside Trump and his sons, arguing that the public airing of their tax information led to material losses and lasting damage to their brand.

The government’s response to the suit remains pending. As of the evening of January 29, neither the IRS nor the Treasury Department had responded to requests for comment, as noted by Reuters. The agencies—particularly the IRS, which operates under the umbrella of the Treasury Department—are likely to face tough questions about their internal controls and the measures taken to protect sensitive taxpayer information.

The lawsuit comes at a moment when the intersection of privacy, politics, and the press is under intense scrutiny. Trump’s legal team frames the matter as not just a breach of privacy but a politically charged attack, with the complaint repeatedly emphasizing the role of “leftist media outlets.” This framing is likely to resonate with Trump’s supporters, who have long argued that the former president has been unfairly targeted by both the media and elements within the federal bureaucracy.

Yet, the case also raises broader questions about the responsibilities of government agencies to protect personal information and the consequences when those protections fail. Prosecutors in Littlejohn’s criminal case highlighted the extraordinary lengths he went to in order to obtain and leak the data, describing the breach as without precedent in IRS history. The Associated Press reported that Littlejohn “applied to work as a contractor to get Trump’s tax returns and carefully figured out how to search and extract tax data to avoid triggering suspicions internally.”

In the wake of the scandal, the U.S. Treasury Department took the significant step of cutting its contract with Booz Allen Hamilton earlier in January 2026. This move, while notable, may have limited practical impact: Booz Allen remains a major contractor for other government agencies, including the Department of Defense, Homeland Security, and various intelligence agencies. Ironically, the firm had recently contributed to Trump’s ballroom project, a lavish development expected to cost more than $400 million, underscoring the complex and sometimes contradictory relationships between government, private contractors, and political figures.

The lawsuit’s $10 billion damages claim is eye-popping but not without precedent in high-profile civil litigation involving public figures and government agencies. Trump’s legal team appears determined to use the courts not only to seek financial compensation but to spotlight what they see as systemic failures within the IRS and Treasury Department. Whether the suit will succeed—and what broader reforms it might prompt—remains to be seen.

For now, the case stands as the latest chapter in the ongoing saga of Trump’s battles with federal agencies, the media, and his political adversaries. As the legal process unfolds, it will test the boundaries of government accountability, individual privacy, and the role of the press in scrutinizing those in power. One thing is certain: the fallout from this unprecedented leak, and the legal fight it has spawned, will continue to reverberate across Washington and beyond.