A historic case
Trump’s case relates to events that began in 2017, when Littlejohn was rehired as a government contractor for consulting firm Booz Allen.
At the time, Trump was making headlines for refusing to release his tax returns to the public, as has been the practice of incoming presidents and as he himself had promised.
Tax returns are protected by strict privacy laws, but since the 1970s, every president except Trump has made theirs public as a gesture of transparency.
Amid the controversy, while working on an IRS contract, Littlejoy stole Trump’s tax files. He later shared the documents with major media outlets.
In 2020, The New York Times published a series of articles that explained how the famously wealthy Trump had underpaid federal income taxes over the previous 15 years.
Then, in 2021, ProPublica relied on Littlejohn’s leaks to explain discrepancies between how Trump’s businesses reported their assets to tax authorities and to creditors.
Trump’s lawsuit says the leaks were politically motivated and “caused significant and irreparable harm” to the president, his sons and his business interests.
Although Littlejohn is not a government employee, Trump argues in his complaint that the IRS is responsible for his actions.
Trump is not the first US president to file a lawsuit against the federal government. But previous efforts came after the president in question had left the White House.
For example, in 1974, scandal-plagued former President Richard Nixon sued in an attempt to retain control of his presidential papers, calling their anticipated publication a breach of confidentiality.
But experts note that unlike Trump, Nixon was no longer in office at the time and he did not seek financial compensation.
Trump himself has previously filed legal complaints against unfair government investigations. But those claims were filed when Trump was a private citizen, in 2023 and 2024, between his first and second terms.
Now that he’s back in office, though, Trump has the power to settle those complaints in his favor and in the IRS case.
Reports indicated that he is seeking a $230m settlement from the Department of Justice (DOJ), which falls under his jurisdiction, similar to the IRS.
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