For the New York Times, Alan Feuer, Andrew Duehren, Glenn Thrush, Ben Protess, and Maggie Haberman have a story, “Inside the Deal to Drop Trump’s $10 Billion Suit Against the I.R.S.” From the piece:
President Trump had sued the I.R.S. for $10 billion, and a federal judge was pressing the Justice Department to explain how it could muster an independent defense of the agency against the man who ultimately controlled it.
Behind the scenes, the job of addressing the vexing problem of how to settle the suit fell to a tight-knit group of lawyers, all of whom had allegiance to Mr. Trump.
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The plan was closely based on an Obama-era case called Keepseagle v. Vilsack, a class-action lawsuit that gave hundreds of millions of dollars to Native American farmers to settle accusations of government discrimination. Mr. McCotter took the idea to the Office of Legal Counsel, which offers advice on the law to Justice Department leaders. The office, run by T. Elliot Gaiser, a former clerk for Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., blessed the proposal, agreeing that Keepseagle could serve as a model.
When the plan was made public, it faced an avalanche of criticism. The Treasury Department’s top lawyer, a Trump appointee, resigned.
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The tax immunity agreement was more like a rescue operation than a formal legal settlement. It called for the I.R.S. to absolve Mr. Trump and his businesses of all audits they were currently facing — including a yearslong battle with the tax agency that could have cost the president more than $100 million.
Previous TaxProf Blog coverage:
- Reports: Trump To Drop Anti-Weaponization Fund Plans (June 2, 2026)
- Additional “Trump Fund” Developments (June 1, 2026)
- Bloomberg: “Democrats’ 100% Tax Plan on Fund Payouts Zeroes In on GOP Angst” (May 25, 2026)
- WSJ: Trump’s Deal With His Administration Also Ends His Tax Audits (May 22, 2026)
- Trump v. United States Dismissed (May 20, 2026)
- NY Times: Justice Dept. Officials Consider Settling Trump Suit Against I.R.S.(May 13, 2026)
- Amici Appointed in Trump v. IRS (May 6, 2026)
- NY Times: Justice Dept. Struggles to Respond to Trump’s Suit Against I.R.S.(Apr. 1, 2026)
- Trump IRS Lawsuit Puts Him on Both Sides of the Case (Feb. 3, 2026)
