Filed Date: July 24, 2025
Case Ongoing
Clearinghouse coding complete
On July 24, 2025, three former federal employees filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the Executive Office of the President, Attorney General Pamela Bondi, the Department of Justice, and the United States. Plaintiffs alleged that they were unlawfully terminated without cause or due process, notwithstanding long-standing, exemplary service in various DOJ roles, in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and the Fifth Amendment.
The plaintiffs challenged their removals as procedurally deficient and politically motivated. Each received a one-page termination memo citing only the President’s Article II authority, without factual justification or adherence to civil service protections. One plaintiff, a federal prosecutor, was removed just days after securing a major criminal indictment and shortly after receiving the highest possible performance rating. Another, a public affairs official, had managed communications on January 6th prosecutions. The third, a veteran and senior ethics official in the DOJ’s Justice Management Division, was terminated without the notice or procedures required under law for Senior Executive Service employees.
The complaint asserted six causes of action, including violations of the APA, ultra vires agency action, and due process deprivations of protected property and liberty interests related to loss of employment and associated reputational harm. Plaintiffs argued that the government’s dismantling of the Merit Systems Protection Board rendered administrative remedies unavailable or futile, entitling them to direct judicial review without administrative exhaustion. They sought declaratory and injunctive relief, reinstatement, backpay, attorney’s fees, and a name-clearing hearing. The case was assigned to Judge Jia M. Cobb, and is ongoing as of October 2025.
Summary Authors
Liv Akkerman-Byram (8/4/2025)
Jack Moore (10/17/2025)
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/70909385/parties/gordon-v-executive-office-of-the-president/
Becker, Harold Craig (District of Columbia)
Eisen, Norman Larry (District of Columbia)
Kolansky, David A. (District of Columbia)
Lowell, Abbe David (District of Columbia)
Moss, Bradley Prescott (District of Columbia)
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/70909385/gordon-v-executive-office-of-the-president/
Last updated Nov. 28, 2025, 12:53 a.m.
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Presidential/Gubernatorial Authority
Special Collection(s):
Trump Administration 2.0: Challenges to the Government
Key Dates
Filing Date: July 24, 2025
Case Ongoing: Yes
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Three former federal employees
Plaintiff Type(s):
U.S. Dept of Justice plaintiff
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
U.S. Department of Justice (- United States (national) -), Federal
Executive Office of the President (- United States (national) -), Federal
Defendant Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. §§ 551 et seq.
All Writs Act, 28 U.S.C. § 1651
Ex Parte Young (Federal) or Bivens
Constitutional Clause(s):
Other Dockets:
District of District of Columbia 1:25-cv-02409
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: None Yet / None
Relief Granted:
Source of Relief:
Issues
General/Misc.:
Presidential/Gubernatorial Authority: