The Daily Fuckup

Donald Trump’s lawyers asked a federal judge on Friday, April 17, 2026, to put his $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS on hold for 90 days while the sides continue settlement talks. The case centers on claims that Trump’s tax information was leaked to news organizations between 2018 and 2020. ([apnews.com](https://apnews.com/article/c710244db618b066f3070a65e75820a5?utm_source=openai))

The filing says the pause would give the parties time to pursue “a settlement or resolution” without prejudicing either side. Trump filed the lawsuit in Florida federal court in January, accusing the IRS and Treasury Department of failing to prevent the disclosure of confidential tax records tied to him, his family members and the Trump Organization. His sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump are also plaintiffs. ([apnews.com](https://apnews.com/article/c710244db618b066f3070a65e75820a5?utm_source=openai))

The lawsuit is tied to the case of former IRS contractor Charles Edward Littlejohn, who was sentenced to five years in prison in 2024 after pleading guilty to leaking tax information about Trump and others. The disclosures led to public reporting on Trump’s taxes and prompted a separate debate over how far the government should have to pay for a leak that has already triggered criminal punishment and administrative fallout. ([apnews.com](https://apnews.com/article/c710244db618b066f3070a65e75820a5?utm_source=openai))

The new pause request does not resolve the larger question hanging over the suit: how much the government can be made to pay, if anything, for the leak. Ethics and tax experts have said the arrangement is unusual because Trump is suing agencies inside the executive branch he leads. His lawyers’ latest filing suggests they would rather see whether that fight can be narrowed or settled before it gets any bigger. ([apnews.com](https://apnews.com/article/c710244db618b066f3070a65e75820a5?utm_source=openai))