Donald Trump, along with members of his family and the Trump Organization company, has filed a lawsuit against the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Department of the Treasury, demanding compensation of no less than 10 billion dollars. This comes amidst a significant budget deficit and rising US national debt, which, according to the IMF, have been largely exacerbated after the adoption of the Trump-initiated tax law, writes Financial Times.
Donald Trump. Photo: Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images
The reason for the lawsuit was the leak of Trump's tax returns. These documents were handed over in 2019-2020 to The New York Times and ProPublica by Charles Littlejohn, a former employee of the consulting company Booz Allen Hamilton, which worked with the IRS. Earlier, during his first presidential campaign, Trump refused to publish his tax returns, breaking a long-standing tradition.
The lawsuit alleges that the transfer of information to "left-wing media" caused serious damage to Trump's and his family's business reputation and finances, led to public humiliation, and created a distorted image of their activities.
Based on the leaked materials, The New York Times reported that in 2016, Trump paid only 750 dollars in federal income tax, and for 10 of the previous 15 years, he paid none at all, using financial schemes where official losses exceeded profits.
In 2024, Littlejohn was sentenced to five years in prison for disclosing tax secrets. Based on this leak, ProPublica published over 50 articles about the tax strategies of the wealthiest people in the US, including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Warren Buffett, and Michael Bloomberg.
As noted by The Wall Street Journal, if the court accepts the lawsuit for consideration, the case will be unprecedented. Although Trump is acting as a private individual, he simultaneously holds the office of president and has the authority to dismiss the very officials who are effectively the defendants: the Secretary of the Treasury, the head of the IRS, and the Attorney General.
As a result, government employees subordinate to Trump will find themselves in a situation where they will have to defend the government's position in court against a lawsuit filed by the president himself, and also negotiate with him regarding possible compromises and payments.
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