He sued over a tax leak to protect his wealth.
A judge says he just tried to trick the court.
When powerful people use courts to write their own rules, regular people pay the price. A federal judge says Donald Trump’s lawyers tried to do just that.
A federal judge blasted Donald Trump’s team for trying to build a $1.8 billion fund and block IRS audits in bad faith.
WHAT HAPPENED
On Monday, US District Judge Kathleen Williams blasted a deal between the Trump team and the IRS. The deal started after a worker leaked Trump’s tax records six years ago.
The judge said Trump’s lawyers acted in bad faith. They tried to set up a $1.776 billion fund to pay Trump's allies. They also tried to give Trump and his businesses a free pass on all past tax issues.
Judge Williams is now sending the lawyers' names to ethics boards. She said top officials should have stepped away from the case instead of helping their former client.
FACT BOX
- $1.776 billion: The size of the proposed fund for Trump’s allies.
- 5 years: The prison sentence for Charles Littlejohn, the contractor who leaked the taxes.
- 56 pages: The length of Judge Williams’ harsh opinion.
- 3 lawyers: The number of Trump attorneys facing potential discipline or court bans.
- 1 year: How long one of Trump's lawyers is banned from this Florida court.
WHY IT MATTERS
This ruling shows that even the most powerful leaders cannot use the justice system as a personal shield. Taxpayers would have been on the hook for nearly $1.8 billion.
The money was meant to help people involved in the Capitol riot and other cases linked to Trump. It would have also stopped the IRS from looking into Trump's past taxes.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
The decision could ruin Trump’s plans to use this deal as a defense in court. The lawyers involved now face reviews that could hurt their careers.
One attorney, Todd Blanche, faces a Senate hearing on Wednesday. Lawmakers will likely ask him tough questions about this deal.
WHAT WE STILL DON'T KNOW
- Will the disciplinary boards actually punish Todd Blanche and Stanley Woodward?
- Will a future administration try to audit Donald Trump’s past taxes now that this deal is blocked?
- Where did the idea for the $1.776 billion fund first come from?
Transparency notes
Published: Jul 13, 2026. No major post-publication update has been logged.
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Sources
External source links were not provided in this article body. Our editors reference publicly available materials and update stories as new verified information arrives.