WASHINGTON – A federal judge is giving former President Donald Trump time to challenge a Department of Justice order that said the IRS must surrender his income tax returns to Congress.
U.S. District Court Judge for the District of Columbia Trevor McFadden said that Trump and his lawyers have until Wednesday to issue a response.
On Friday, the Department of Justice said that the former president’s tax returns must be released by the IRS to Congress, a reversal from its position held during the Trump administration.
The DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel said in a 39-page opinion that the Democratic-led House Ways and Means Committee had made a request with a legitimate legislative purpose to see Trump’s tax returns, with a stated objective of assessing how the IRS audits presidents’ tax returns.
Trump’s lawyers did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
Friday’s decision comes more than a year after the U.S. Supreme Court said that Trump’s tax returns had to be turned over by his longtime accountants to Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., because of a subpoena issued as part of criminal probe.
