Donald Trump and his two sons, Eric and Don Jr., have filed a massive lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Treasury Department, alleging that the agencies allowed the leak of their tax records. According to the lawsuit, former IRS contractor Charles Littlejohn was not prevented from leaking some of the most confidential tax information related to the Trump Organization.
The U.S. president’s legal team has claimed that the leak was politically motivated and deliberately directed toward left-wing news outlets, including The New York Times and ProPublica. The lawsuit marks the first time a sitting president has sued his own federal agencies.
Sitting President attempts to steal $10 BILLION from taxpayers.
The most corrupt regime of our lifetimes. With no close second.
And the Hunter hunters are silent. https://t.co/82msq9g8e8 pic.twitter.com/dbw6HaVic9
— The Tennessee Holler (@TheTNHoller) January 30, 2026
A spokesperson for Trump’s legal team has shared further details about the lawsuit. According to CNBC, the IRS allowed a rogue and politically motivated employee to handle private and confidential information related to the Trumps. That individual allegedly leaked the information to leading news outlets, where it was illegally released to millions of people. The statement read, “President Trump continues to hold those who wrong America and Americans accountable.”
The civil complaint seeks $10 billion in damages and was filed in a Miami federal court. The lawsuit comes three days after the Treasury secretary confirmed the cancellation of 31 departmental contracts, including one involving the consulting firm that had hired Littlejohn. The former employee is accused of stealing and leaking confidential information.
Charles Littlejohn is serving a five-year prison sentence after pleading guilty in October 2023. He was charged with one count of disclosure of tax return information after admitting that he obtained Trump’s tax records and other sensitive details and shared them with the news outlet ProPublica.
The U.S. president’s tax information was not the only data leaked. Littlejohn also disclosed tax records of other high-profile wealthy individuals, including Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk. The New York Times later reported that Donald Trump paid just $750 in federal income taxes in both 2016 and 2017. Meanwhile, ProPublica highlighted several inconsistencies in Trump’s business finances, drawing widespread attention.
So Trump is suing his own Treasury Department and the IRS because his tax returns were leaked-the very returns that he PROMISED he was going to release himself if elected.
The man has no shame, no morals. There is no room for those because he is too full of greed.
— The Watcher (@TheWatc53981021) January 30, 2026
Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns has long remained a debatable topic of public discussion. By doing so, he broke a longstanding presidential tradition and fueled increased public curiosity and speculation.
The new lawsuit states, “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.”
Following the tax leak, the IRS condemned Charles Littlejohn’s actions, describing them as “unacceptable.” The agency said it has been working to detect and prevent any further leaks and issued an apology to the affected parties whose information was released to the press.
Neither the IRS nor the Treasury Department has shared an official statement on the lawsuit. Meanwhile, news of Trump suing a federal agency has sparked widespread reaction online.
